Washington, United States | AFP | Rico Montego, 22, is out and about in Washington on his daily routine, chatting with friends on a street corner in the east of the city, despite the strict stay-at-home orders. Compliance with the lockdown — now in its eighth week — has been patchy …
Read More »A world redrawn: virus a ‘genocide’ threat for Amazon, warns Salgado
Paris, France | AFP | Legendary photographer Sebastiao Salgado has warned of a “genocide” of the Amazon’s indigenous peoples if the Brazilian government does not do more to protect them from the coronavirus. The country’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro — who has dismissed the virus as a “little flu” — has …
Read More »Migrant boat crossings to UK surge during virus lockdown
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The number of unaccompanied young migrants crossing the Channel from France to Britain has spiked during the coronavirus outbreak, as travel restrictions force them onto boats rather than trucks. Kent County Council in southeast England, which includes the major port of Dover, was dealing with …
Read More »WHO reports record virus cases as Trump proposes face-to-face G7 summit
Washington, United States | AFP | The World Health Organization on Wednesday reported the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases, as US President Donald Trump proposed hosting world leaders for the annual G7 summit as a sign of “normalization.” Trump, who is seeking to revive the battered US economy and his …
Read More »Equities rally on hopes for economic rebound
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Stock markets picked up Wednesday on hopes for a strong US economic rebound even though retailers reported mixed results and US-China tensions continued to mount. Equities have enjoyed a broad advance for several weeks as virus infection and death rates slow, allowing governments to lift …
Read More »Trump blames Chinese ‘incompetence’ for ‘mass Worldwide killing’
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump again lashed out at China Wednesday over the coronavirus pandemic, blaming Beijing for “mass Worldwide killing.” The early morning tweet, which also referred to an unidentified “wacko in China,” was the latest heated rhetoric from the White House, where Trump is making attacks on Beijing …
Read More »Virus vaccine will be ‘global public good’: top US official
Washington, United States | AFP | If the United States is the first to develop an effective vaccine against the novel coronavirus, it has to quickly share it with the world, the head of the National Institutes of Health, Francis Collins, told AFP in an interview. President Donald Trump’s administration has …
Read More »British supermarkets threaten Brazil boycott over Amazon land law
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Leading British supermarket chains have warned Brazil they may be forced to boycott its goods if lawmakers in the South American country pass a bill that would “encourage further land grabbing” in the Amazon. In an open letter to Brazilian senators and deputies, the companies …
Read More »Renewable energy should be at the heart of virus recovery plans: IEA
Paris, France | AFP | The International Energy Agency on Wednesday called on governments to put clean energy at the heart of their coronavirus economic recovery plans, as it forecast the first slowdown in new renewable power installations worldwide in two decades. The IEA warned that lockdown measures — which at …
Read More »France looks past Google, Apple for virus contact tracing
Paris, France | AFP | France, which has long been sceptical of the growing power of US tech titans, is seeking to bypass Apple and Google for a smartphone app to help trace people infected with the novel coronavirus. The move, which leaves France relatively isolated in Europe alongside Britain and …
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