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NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — India is wilting under a heatwave, with the temperature in places reaching 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) and the capital enduring its hottest May day in nearly two decades. The hot spell is projected to scorch northern India for several more days, the Meteorological Department said late Tuesday, “with severe heat wave conditions in isolated pockets”. As global temperatures rise, heatwaves are a regular menace in the country — […]
by Andrew LEESON Agence France-Presse COBARGO, Australia (AFP) — Victims of Australia’s catastrophic bushfires are still living in tents, garages and makeshift shelters months after the blazes ended, with efforts to rebuild their lives hampered by the coronavirus pandemic. Inside a small tin shed on Australia’s southeast coast, a family of six takes refuge from the cold as the southern hemisphere winter begins to bite. The structure — chock-full of toys and beds — has […]
by Alexandria SAGE Agence France-Presse Pompeii, Italy (AFP) — Italy’s world-famous archaeological site Pompeii reopened to the public on Tuesday as the country’s coronavirus lockdown lifted — though guides outnumbered tourists at the ancient Roman city. The exceptionally-preserved remains of the city covered in volcanic ash by the eruption of nearby Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago in 79 A.D. are usually the country’s second-most visited site after the Colosseum in Rome. But on Tuesday, many […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Anti-viral drug remdesivir cuts recovery times in coronavirus patients, according to the full results of a trial published Friday night, three weeks after America’s top infectious diseases expert said the study showed the medication has “clear-cut” benefits. Complete results from the research, which was carried out by US government agency the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), were published by leading medical periodical the New England Journal of […]
by Nina LARSON Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization said on Monday it had temporarily suspended clinical trials of hydroxychloroquine as a potential treatment for coronavirus. The decision came after a study published in The Lancet medical journal last week suggested the drug could increase the risk of death among COVID-19 patients, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual press conference. Tedros said the executive group of the […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — The International Committee of the Red Cross warned Thursday of a worsening crisis in northeast Syria, where water cuts, food shortages and depleted health services are proving as dangerous as coronavirus. Home to sprawling displacement camps hosting tens of thousands of people, including families of Islamic State group members, the Kurdish-held northeast has been hard hit by nine years of war. A COVID-19 outbreak, which the United Nations says has infected […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Doctors in Japan have successfully transplanted liver cells derived from embryonic stem cells into a newborn baby, in a world first that could provide new treatment options for infants. The newborn was suffering from urea cycle disorder, where the liver is not capable of breaking down toxic ammonia. But the six-day-old was too small to undergo a liver transplant, generally not considered safe until a child weighs around six kilogrammes (13 […]
by Fran BLANDY and AFP Africa bureaus PICTURES BY SIMON MAINA AND NIPAH DENNIS Agence France-Presse NAIROBI, Kenya (AFP)— Watching from afar as much of the world was brought to its knees by the coronavirus, African scientists, engineers and innovators have turned to homegrown solutions to prepare for the worst case scenario. By the time the virus hit Africa, where cases have risen relatively slowly, images of overwhelmed hospitals and stories of health workers strapped for […]
by Qian Ye and Matthew Knight Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — A Chinese laboratory has been developing a drug it believes has the power to bring the coronavirus pandemic to a halt. 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 China’s prestigious Peking University could not only shorten the recovery […]
HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Tests on hamsters reveal the widespread use of facemasks reduces transmission of the deadly coronavirus, a team of leading experts in Hong Kong said Sunday. The research by the University of Hong Kong is some of the first to specifically investigate whether masks can stop symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers from infecting others. Led by Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, one of the world’s top coronavirus experts, the team placed hamsters […]
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — Spraying disinfectant on the streets, as practised in some countries, does not eliminate the new coronavirus and even poses a health risk, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Saturday. In a document on cleaning and disinfecting surfaces as part of the response to the virus, the WHO says spraying can be ineffective. “Spraying or fumigation of outdoor spaces, such as streets or marketplaces, is… not recommended to kill the […]
by AFP video journalists in bureaus around the world Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — From the hospital ward and the distress of patients dying, to the home front full of fear of infecting their own families, medical workers face gut-wrenching daily decisions more than ever in the fight against the coronavirus. AFPTV journalists followed doctors, nurses, ambulance staff and caregivers on the front line of the virus in Paris, Beirut, Stockholm, Sao Paulo, […]
