International

US intel: China hid outbreak extent, lawmakers warn citing report

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States has accused China of lying about the extent of its deadly coronavirus outbreak, according to American lawmakers who on Wednesday cited an intelligence report presented to the White House. Republicans in Congress, pointing to a report by Bloomberg citing US intelligence officials, expressed outrage that Beijing apparently misled the international community on China’s infections and deaths that began in late 2019 in the city of Wuhan. China’s […]

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One Turkish doctor dies, over 600 health workers infected

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — A Turkish doctor died and more than 600 healthcare workers have been infected with the novel coronavirus, the health minister announced on Wednesday, without disguising his grief over the worsening situation. “The number of our doctor friends, nurses or other healthcare personnel affected by the novel coronavirus is high. This figure, which I reluctantly announce, is 601,” Minister Fahrettin Koca told a news conference, with a voice on the verge of […]

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US surpasses 200,000 coronavirus cases: tracker

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Wednesday has surpassed 200,000 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The pandemic has claimed the lives of at least 4,476 people in the United States, which leads the world in the number of confirmed infections with 203,608, by the Johns Hopkins count. New York state is the epicenter of the US fight against the deadly virus, with […]

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In supermarket front lines, cashiers fear the worst

by Alexandria SAGE ROME, Italy (AFP) — The customers wander around in the stores, touch the food and even lick their fingers while riffling through bills. Anyone of them could have the virus, and pass it along. Such are the nagging thoughts of grocery store workers in Italy and beyond: exhausted, unprotected and, much says, overly exposed to the coronavirus. Around the world, where millions of people are quarantined at home, people can still shop […]

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Spain death toll hits 9,053 as virus cases pass 100,000

  MADRID, Spain (AFP) — The coronavirus death toll in Spain surged over 9,000 on Wednesday after a record 864 deaths in 24 hours, with the number of confirmed cases passing the 100,000 mark, the government said. Spain has the world’s second-highest death toll after Italy, with the virus so far claiming 9,053 lives and the number of confirmed cases reaching 102,136. But on a day-to-day basis, the rate of new infections continued its downward […]

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Iran hits out at US as virus death toll passes 3,000

TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran’s death toll from the coronavirus has passed 3,000, the health ministry said on Wednesday, as President Hassan Rouhani accused Washington of missing a “historic opportunity” to lift sanctions. Tensions between the arch-foes have soared since President Donald Trump abandoned a landmark nuclear agreement in 2018 and reimposed sweeping sanctions. Tehran has repeatedly called on Washington to reverse its policy, which has been opposed by US allies, particularly since the COVID-19 […]

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World faces food crisis in wake of coronavirus: UN, WTO

PARIS, France (AFP) — The heads of three global agencies warned Wednesday of the risk of a worldwide “food shortage” if authorities fail to manage the ongoing coronavirus crisis properly. Many governments around the world have put their populations on lockdown causing severe slow-downs in international trade and food supply chains. Panic buying by people going into confinement has already demonstrated the fragility of supply chains as supermarket shelves emptied in many countries. “Uncertainty about […]

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California to release 3,500 non-violent prison inmates

  LOS ANGELES, United State (AFP) — The prison system in the largest US state of California plans to release about 3,500 non-violent inmates early to help mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 illness, officials said Tuesday. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) said the first group of inmates released will be those with less then 30 days to serve, followed by those with fewer than 60 days of their sentences left. Other […]

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Russian plane heads to US with supplies for virus fight

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — A Russian military plane carrying medical equipment has departed for the United States, the defense ministry in Moscow said Wednesday, as the Kremlin flexes its soft power amid the coronavirus pandemic. Antonov-124, “with medical masks and medical equipment onboard”, left for the US overnight, a statement said, without providing further details. Video released by the ministry showed the cargo plane loaded with boxes preparing to take off from a military airbase […]

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Hundreds of Tunisians protest virus lockdown

MNILHA, Tunisia (AFP) — Several hundred Tunisians demonstrated in a working-class district of the capital Tuesday, demanding government support and protesting a week-old lockdown against the coronavirus pandemic that has disproportionately impacted the poor. “Nevermind coronavirus, we’re going to die anyway! Let us work!” shouted one protester. “Let me at least bring bread home for my children,” the bricklayer told AFP. In poor areas like Mnilha and Ettadhamen on the outskirts of the Tunisian capital, […]

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China reports 1,300 asymptomatic virus cases after public concern

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Wednesday said it has more than 1,300 asymptomatic coronavirus cases, the first time it has released such data following public concern over people who have tested positive but are not showing symptoms. Health officials also reported the first imported case from abroad in Wuhan — the epicenter where the virus first emerged late last year — heightening fears of infections being brought into China from other countries. Of 36 […]

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The rent is due but many Americans can’t pay the bills

by Luc OLINGA and Juliette MICHEL NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — The coronavirus pandemic took Brittany Brook’s job on March 16, two days after it took her husband Matthew Whitfield’s, leaving the New York couple scrambling as end-of-the-month bills come due. On April 1, Brook, an artist who until recently taught music at a preschool school, and Whitfield, a now-former waiter and actor, have to pay the rent and other bills, as do millions […]

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