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by Marion DOUET Agence France Presse NAIROBI, Kenya (AFP) — East Africa is bracing for a third outbreak of desert locusts, with billions of the destructive insects about to hatch and threaten food supplies in a region already reeling from damaging rains and the coronavirus pandemic. Spurred by favourable weather conditions, the migratory pests have descended on East Africa in record numbers since late 2019 and another wave is about to take to the skies […]
by Issam AHMED WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States does not need more widespread lockdowns to bring its COVID-19 outbreak under control, despite the fact that the national daily infection rate has stayed flat, leading government expert Anthony Fauci said Thursday. Speaking to AFP, the physician-scientist added he was optimistic the world would soon have a vaccine that would end the pandemic, calling early trial results “encouraging.” “I don’t think we’re going to […]
WASHINGON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Thursday questioned China’s credibility on reporting fresh coronavirus cases in Beijing and called for neutral observers to assess the extent of the outbreak. China has locked down the capital as it seeks to prevent a second wave of COVID-19, reporting 158 cases since a fresh cluster was detected last week. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, an outspoken critic of China, urged greater transparency during talks […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States lost another 687 people to the new coronavirus in the 24 hours leading up to 8:30 pm (0030 GMT) Thursday, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. It marks the eighth day in which the daily toll from the virus has been fewer than 1,000, even as the US remains the country hardest-hit by the pandemic with a total of 118,381 deaths out of a total […]
by Jing Xuan Teng with AFP bureaux BEIJING, China (AFP) — China imposed travel restrictions on nearly half a million people near its capital on Thursday to contain a fresh coronavirus outbreak as deaths surged in other parts of the world. The threat of a second wave hitting China, which had largely brought the virus under control, and rising tolls in Latin America and South Asia underscore the global challenge in slowing down the pandemic […]
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canada will soon roll out a COVID-19 tracing app for smartphones, developed with help from BlackBerry and Shopify, it was announced Thursday, as the number of cases topped 100,000. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told a daily briefing it will be “crucial” to increase testing and contact tracing going forward as pandemic restrictions start to be gradually eased. As part of that effort, he said “a mobile app that will notify users […]
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — California’s Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday ordered all Californians to wear face masks in public in a bid to stem the spread of the coronavirus. “Science shows that face coverings and masks work,” Newsom said in a statement. “They are critical to keeping those who are around you safe, keeping businesses open and restarting our economy.” His order came following a decision last week by officials in Orange County, […]
(Eagle News) – The number of COVID-19 recoveries surpassed 7,000 as the Department of Health reported 270 recoveries on Thursday, June 18, as total virus cases in the Philippines reached 27,799. Total COVID-19 recoveries hit 7,090 as the DOH reported daily recoveries of more than 250 in the past few days. But COVID-19 cases added daily continued to increase as well, and mostly were more than 500 recently. As of 4 p.m., there were 562 […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s government on Thursday urged citizens to install the country’s first coronavirus-tracing app when it launches this week, pledging that the system would not invade users’ privacy. The smartphone app, which like those in many countries relies on Bluetooth tracking and the permission of users, will launch on Friday. “This is an important tool to protect your lives, so please install it,” Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of the government’s […]
Funds to be used for education and health grants for poor families (Eagle News) — The Philippine government obtained additional funds to address the COVID-19 pandemic with a “fresh US$500-million financing package from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).” The Department of Finance said that this will “help support the country’s immediate budgetary requirements” particularly in funding the Pantawid Pamilya program for poor families, as the virus crisis continues to take its toll on the […]
by Jing Xuan Teng and Laurie Chen BEIJING, China (AFP) — Travel restrictions were placed on nearly half a million people near Beijing on Thursday as authorities rush to contain a fresh outbreak of the coronavirus with a mass test-and-trace effort and lockdowns in parts of the Chinese capital. Another 21 cases of the virus were reported in the past 24 hours in Beijing, the National Health Commission said, taking the total number to 158 […]
NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan (AFP) — Kazakhstan’s 79-year-old former president and official ‘Leader of the Nation’ Nursultan Nazarbayev has tested positive for the coronavirus, a statement on his official website said Thursday. “Currently, the First President of Kazakhstan is in self-isolation. Unfortunately, the last test… for the coronavirus infection showed a positive result. There is no cause for concern,” the statement said. The statement said that Nazarbayev is “continuing to work remotely.” Strongman Nazarbayev, who turns 80 […]
