International

Virus claims record dead but US President Trump sees light at end of tunnel

by Susan STUMME with AFP Bureaus Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The coronavirus pandemic notched up another round of record death tolls in the United States and Europe, dousing the optimism of US President Donald Trump who insisted there was light at the end of the tunnel. The virus has now killed more than 87,000 people and infected over 1.5 million, according to an AFP tally on Thursday, sparing almost no country […]

Taiwan demands apology from WHO chief over virus ‘slander’

  TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Taiwan demanded an apology from the World Health Organization chief on Thursday after he accused the island’s government of leading personal attacks against him and his agency’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for unity to fight the disease on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump criticized the global health body and threatened to cut its funding. During the press conference he spoke of the […]

‘Italy’s youngest patient’ recovers from virus: media

ROME, Italy (AFP) — A two-month-old baby who was believed to have been Italy’s youngest COVID-19 patient has been released from hospital after overcoming the disease, media reports said Thursday. The baby was no longer running a temperature or fever and was released with her mother, who has recovered from a bout of pneumonia, the reports said. The two were hospitalized in the southern city of Bari on March 18. Italy has officially attributed 17,669 […]

UN delivers 90 tons of COVID-19 aid to Venezuela

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — A plane carrying 90 tons of UN health, water, and sanitation aid arrived in Venezuela on Wednesday to help the cash-strapped country fight the coronavirus pandemic. The shipment includes 28,000 Personal Protective Equipment kits for health workers, oxygen concentrators, pediatric beds, water quality control products, and hygiene kits, the UN said. “This is the first United Nations humanitarian shipment in support of the Venezuela COVID-19 outbreak,” said Peter Grohmann, the UN’s […]

Global coronavirus cases top 1.5 million: AFP tally

PARIS, France (AFP) — More than 1.5 million cases of the novel coronavirus have been registered worldwide, according to a tally compiled by AFP at 0530 GMT Thursday from official sources. Of the 1,502,478 infections, 87,320 people have died across 192 countries and territories since the epidemic first emerged in China late last year. The tallies, using data collected by AFP from national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO), probably reflect only […]

Coronavirus adds to struggles in City of God favela

PICTURES BY MAURO PIMENTEL. Agence France-Presse RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — There are no good options these days in City of God. Venture out in this densely populated Rio de Janeiro favela, and residents risk exposing themselves to coronavirus. Stay in, and many have nothing to eat. The Brazilian slum rose to fame in 2002, when an acclaimed film of the same name chronicled the violence, crime and stark choices facing young people growing up […]

Monster storm gathers strength off Tonga

NUKU’ALOFA, Tonga (AFP) — Tropical Cyclone Harold surged back into a scale-topping Category Five storm Thursday as it sideswiped Tonga after leaving a trail of destruction across the South Pacific. The island kingdom declared a state of emergency late Wednesday as the storm bore down, warning of destructive winds and massive sea surges. Police said early Thursday that power had been cut in parts of the country and howling winds were gathering pace amid heavy […]

‘Abandoned’ Italian hospital fears virus’ march south

by Alexandria SAGE Agence France Presse ROME, Italy (AFP) — At the Locri hospital in southern Italy, patients are often sent elsewhere for lack of doctors, the lifts are endlessly in disrepair and the CT scan works one day, but not the next. Infiltration by the mafia, severe doctor shortages and a regional health agency hundreds of millions of euros in debt are just a few of the challenges the hospital confronted in 2019 alone. […]

US pharmacies authorized to test for coronavirus

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US authorized pharmacies on Wednesday to carry out tests for the coronavirus, including newly developed antibody tests that detect whether a person who has recovered from illness had COVID-19. Health secretary Alex Azar, announced that all tests approved by regulators could be carried out by pharmacies as the country seeks to ramp up its testing efforts. “The Trump Administration is pleased to give pharmacists the chance to play a bigger […]

US tops 400,000 coronavirus cases: tracker

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Wednesday surpassed 400,000 novel coronavirus cases, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The pandemic has now claimed the lives of at least 12,936 people in the United States, which leads the world in the number of confirmed infections with 401,116, by the Baltimore-based school’s count. The 300,000-case milestone was passed on Saturday. The US death toll is approaching those of hard-hit Italy with […]

Erdogan under pressure as coronavirus cases spike in Turkey

by Gokan GUNES Agence France Presse ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stepped up measures to stem surging coronavirus cases in Turkey but his refusal to impose a full lockdown in order to keep the economy afloat is drawing criticism. With gatherings banned, restrictions on intercity trips, and the obligation to wear masks almost everywhere, Erdogan has imposed a series of tough measures but so far resisted calls for a complete lockdown. […]

France to extend lockdown as virus deaths soar in Europe, US

by Herve Bar with AFP bureaus Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — France said Wednesday it would extend a lockdown aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus as the death toll soared across Europe and the US — and experts warned the looming global recession could be the worst in decades. Governments are grappling with how to balance public safety against the devastating economic impact of stay-at-home orders that have erased millions of […]