The Nation Newspaper

Category: Foreign

  • Trump says coronavirus will ‘go away without a vaccine’

    Trump says coronavirus will ‘go away without a vaccine’

    Our Reporter

    President Trump at the weekend broke with health experts, telling reporters that the coronavirus will “go away without a vaccine.”

    “This is going to go away without a vaccine, it’s gonna go away, and we’re not going to see it again, hopefully, after a period of time,” Trump said at the White House. “You may have some flare-ups, and I guess I would expect that.”

    Just days ago the Trump administration launched Operation Warp Speed, a project to accelerate the production of a vaccine for the coronavirus, which as of Friday had infected at least 1.2 million Americans and killed more than 76,000 here.

    Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading expert on infectious diseases on the coronavirus task force, has repeatedly cautioned that a vaccine is still at least a year to 18 months from being made available to the public.

    Read Also: As Trump muddies the waters of COVID-19

    In an interview last week with Fox News, Fauci said the coronavirus outbreak was “not going to be over to the point of our being able to not do any mitigation until we have a scientifically sound, safe and effective vaccine.”

    Asked what led him to believe that the virus would disappear without a vaccine, Trump claimed he had received that information from medical professionals.

    “I just rely on what doctors say. They say it’s going to go. That doesn’t mean this year. It doesn’t mean, frankly, it’s going to be gone before the fall or after the fall, but eventually it’s going to go away. The question is whether we will need a vaccine. At some point it will probably go away by itself.”

  • Trump vetoes law barring him from launching war on Iran

    Trump vetoes law barring him from launching war on Iran

    Agency Reporter

     

    President Donald Trump has vetoed legislation that limited a president’s ability to wage war against Iran without the approval of Congress.

    On Wednesday, Mr Trump said that he vetoed the Iran war powers resolution because it was “insulting” to the presidency.

    In a statement, he argued that the nonbinding legislation “purported to direct me to terminate the use of United States Armed Forces in hostilities against Iran.”

    Congress passed the Iran war powers resolution in the aftermath of the US killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, amid widespread concerns about tensions between the US and Iran.

    At the time, the resolution – which was introduced to Congress by Democratic Senator Tim Kaine – showed bipartisan support for reigning-in president Trump’s war-making powers.

    “This was a very insulting resolution, introduced by Democrats as part of a strategy to win an election on November 3 by dividing the Republican Party,” said Trump in the White House statement on Wednesday. “The few Republicans who voted for it played right into their hands.”

    In another White House memo, reported CNN, the president said “This indefinite prohibition is unnecessary and dangerous”.

    “The resolution implies that the President’s constitutional authority to use military force is limited to defense of the United States and its forces against imminent attack. That is incorrect,” Trump said on Wednesday.

    Trump continued: “We live in a hostile world of evolving threats, and the Constitution recognises that the President must be able to anticipate our adversaries’ next moves and take swift and decisive action in response. That’s what I did!”

    Congress is not expected to override the president’s veto during a vote on Thursday, as Republicans hold a 53-to 47-seat majority in the US senate.

    Mr. Kaine on Wednesday called on senators to vote with him to override the veto, saying on Twitter: “I urge my colleagues to join me in voting to override his veto—Congress must vote before sending our troops into harm’s way.”

    The resolution was passed by the House of Representatives in March and the Senate in April, with the support of a small number of Republicans.

    (www.newsnow.co.uk)

  • Black people four times more likely to die of COVID-19 – UK report

    Black people four times more likely to die of COVID-19 – UK report

    Agency Reporter

     

    People from black heritage are more than four times likely to die from coronavirus, according to an analysis by Britain’s Office for National Statistics (ONS).

    The new report showed that black males in England and Wales are 4.2 times more likely to die if they contract the deadly virus; the risk is 4.3 times more for black women.

    People with Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Indian backgrounds and mixed ethnicities have also a higher risk of death from coronavirus than white people, the ONS suggested.

    Until April 17, 83.8% of people dying were of white ethnicity, but black people became the biggest ethnicity group in victims with 6%, the statistics office said.

    The ONS said a “substantial part of the difference in COVID-19 mortality between ethnic groups is explained by the different circumstances in which members of those groups are known to live, such as areas with socio-economic deprivation.”

    “Geographic and socio-economic factors were accounting for over half of the difference in risk between males and females of black and white ethnicity,” it said.

    “However, these factors do not explain all of the difference, suggesting that other causes are still to be identified.”

    The deaths of first health workers in early stage of the outbreak in the UK had grabbed media attention as they were of the ethnicity groups highlighted in the ONS analysis.

    The analysis looked at coronavirus-related deaths from March 2 to April 10, which were registered by April 17, linking data with 2011 census.

    As of Thursday, the UK has the highest death toll in Europe with 30,097 fatalities reported on Wednesday. The figure is second highest in the world after the US, which saw more than 73,000 people perished to the virus.

    (www.newsnow.co.uk)

  • BREAKING: Sacked Kano Commissioner tests positive for COVID-19

    BREAKING: Sacked Kano Commissioner tests positive for COVID-19

    Our Reporter

     

    Sacked Kano Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Muazu Magaji, has tested positive for COVID-19.

    He was sacked on April 18 by Governor Abdullahi Ganduje for mocking late Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mallam Abba Kyari.

    In a series of Facebook posts, Magaji criticised Kyari, who had just been declared positive, wishing he never returned to office.

    Read Also: Another Professor dies in Kano

    Magaji declared his status in a Facebook post on Thursday.

    According to him: “Dear all, I do truly apologize to you not getting across to me on phone or messages.

    “I have been indisposed due to ongoing health challenges some of us going through in Kano. In Sha Allah it will be well.

    “This morning my NCDC test is out. I have been confirmed COVID-19 positive and have been moved to one of the state facilities… pray for us.”

  • COVID-19 pandemic pushes US, China into ‘new Cold War”

    COVID-19 pandemic pushes US, China into ‘new Cold War”

    Agency Reporter

    A dramatic deterioration in US-China relations in recent days has convinced current and former government advisers on both sides that bilateral ties have plummeted to their lowest point in decades.

    Over the past week, the Trump administration has threatened to scrap an initial trade deal and increase tariffs on China, backed tough new export controls for Chinese firms buying American tech products, and continued to push theories claiming the coronavirus originated in a laboratory in the city of Wuhan.

    The White House is also “turbocharging” an initiative among “friendly nations” to push manufacturing supply chains out of China, according to Reuters.

    And a leaked report from the US Department of Homeland Security accused Beijing of covering up the severity of the virus so it could hoard medical supplies at the start of the year.

    China’s state media and “wolf warrior” diplomats have ratcheted up social media attacks on US political figures in response.

    Read Also: Uganda cautions public on HIV/AIDS spread amid COVID-19 pandemic

    Last week, a video mocking America’s handling of the coronavirus, titled “Once Upon a Virus,” was widely shared among hawkish foreign ministry officials after it was released by official news agency Xinhua.

    Analysts say the gloves are now off, with any residual optimism from the phase one trade deal signed in mid-January gone, along with all hope that trade ties could help salvage the wider US-China relationship.

    “The United States and China are actually in the era of a new Cold War,” said Shi Yinhong, an international relations professor at China’s Renmin University and an adviser to China’s State Council, effectively the country’s cabinet.

    “Different from the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, the new Cold War between the US and China features full competition and a rapid decoupling. The US-China relationship is no longer the same as that of a few years ago, not even the same as that of a few months ago.”

    While the rhetoric about a “new Cold War” is a common talking point in Washington, it is used less frequently in public by Chinese advisers and scholars. After all, the original Cold War spelt the end of the Soviet Union and left the United States victorious.

    But the nosedive in relations in recent weeks has slingshotted the comparison from the fringes of the Trump administration into the mainstream.

    (www.newsnow.co.uk)

  • John Legend calls Trump an ‘Idiot’

    John Legend calls Trump an ‘Idiot’

    Chinyere Okoroafor

    American singer, John Legend has branded President Donald Trump an Idiot in a recent online interview with British GQ Hype.

    He spoke while asnwering a question about his thoughts on Trump’s agenda and violent rhetoric, such as his suggestion that COVID-19 patients might inject their lungs with disinfectant.

    Replying the latest issue of  British GQ Hype, the 41 year-old singer said, “It’s so ridiculous. It’s almost like you can’t believe it’s real that we elected this idiot to be the President of the United States. The things that he says are just so ridiculously dumb and so ridiculously selfish and narcissistic at the same time.

    “He says a bunch of ridiculous happy-talk home remedies that people should not be doing and he thinks he’s brilliant because he has a relative who is a doctor. And then you combine that with the fact that he doesn’t listen to scientists and makes every decision on how it will benefit him personally.

    READ ALSO: Nigeria will do anything for ventilators –Trump

    “He’s also a very short-term thinker, so he doesn’t think much about how to handle big, complex problems that require planning and long-term vision. He’s the exact opposite of what we need right now.

    Legend thinks the pandemic will last much longer in America because of the president’s “incompetence” and lack of long-term thinking.

    “It couldn’t be a worse person to be in charge right now than him and that’s what America is stuck with and that’s why we have the highest death rate in the world from this disease and I don’t believe we’re going to be out of the woods for a while, because of his incompetence, his selfishness, his short-sightedness and his inability to coordinate a real national response,” he said.

    The singer also said that he and his family have “adjusted” to lockdown measures quite well and are lucky to be in a privileged position.

    “I feel like we’ve adjusted pretty well. We’re fortunate, of course. We have the resources to deal with everything we need to deal with in a pretty painless way.

    “We have our family unit and we love our kids and love hanging out with them. And they especially love being home with us 24/7. We’re making the best of a wild situation.”

  • South Africa to examine Madagascar’s COVID-19 drug

    South Africa to examine Madagascar’s COVID-19 drug

    Agency Reporter

    South Africa has expressed willingness to assist Madagascar to undertake scientific analysis of COVID Organics (CVO), a herbal drink that is said to prevent and cure patients suffering from the novel coronavirus or COVID-19.

    ”We received a call from the government of Madagascar, which asked for help with scientific research,” Health Minister Zweli Mkhize, said in a Twitter post.

    ”Our scientists would be able to assist in the research. We will only get involved in a scientific analysis of the herb,” he added.

    Last month, Malagasy President Andry Rajoelina officially launched the CVO, a herbal mixture, claiming that it can prevent and cure patients suffering from the novel coronavirus.

    The drug was developed by the Malagasy Institute of Applied Research.

    Rajoelina said on Monday that his government was already collaborating with foreign doctors and researchers for research possibilities of the Artemisia plant — the main component of CVO.

    He said the country was working on a new injectable solution of CVO also.

    Read Also: COVID-19: Oyakhilome lambasts pastors for backing church closure

    “A pharmaceutical factory will be set up within a month to increase the production capacity of CVO. It will be administered in other forms such as injections,” said the president.

    The African Union has also said that it is obtaining technical data related to the safety and efficiency of the CVO.

    But, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned against any self-medication and said it has not recommended any medicine as a cure for COVID-19.

    The UN agency said it supports scientifically-proven traditional medicine.

    ”WHO welcomes every opportunity to collaborate with countries and researchers to develop new therapies and encourages such collaboration for the development of effective and safe therapies for Africa and the world,” the UN agency responsible for global health said in a statement.

    The total number of coronavirus cases in Africa have reached 49,352, according to data released by the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday.

    (www.newsnow.co.uk)

  • British health chief ‘speechless’ as COVID-19 adviser breaks lockdown

    British health chief ‘speechless’ as COVID-19 adviser breaks lockdown

    Agency Reporter

    Britain’s Health Minister on Wednesday said he was left “speechless” by the resignation of a prominent adviser on the government’s COVID-19 response, who broke the country’s lockdown rules.

    “I am speechless,” Health Secretary Matt Hancock told Sky News after the resignation on Tuesday of Neil Ferguson, an epidemiologist at Imperial College London.

    According to Hancock, Prof. Ferguson is a very eminent and impressive scientist and the science that he has done has been an important part of what we’ve listened to.

    “I think he took the right decision to resign,’’ he said.

    Hancock said Britain’s social-distancing rules were “there for everyone; they are incredibly important and they are deadly serious.”

    The Daily Telegraph reported on Tuesday that Ferguson had allowed his “married lover to visit him at home during the lockdown while lecturing the public on the need for strict social-distancing.

    READ ALSO: British WWII veteran, 99, raises £12m for health workers

    “I accept I made an error of judgement and took the wrong course of action.

    “I acted in the belief that I was immune, having tested positive for coronavirus, and completely isolated myself for almost two weeks after developing symptoms.

    “I deeply regret any undermining of the clear messages around the continued need for social-distancing to control this devastating epidemic,’’ Ferguson told the newspaper.

    The resignation came amid growing pressure on Hancock and other ministers in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government about their response to the coronavirus pandemic.

    On Tuesday, Britain overtook Italy to record Europe’s highest death toll linked to the virus.

    (dpa/NAN)

  • Floods kill 16 in Somalia, affect over 200,000 others

    Floods kill 16 in Somalia, affect over 200,000 others

    UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Wednesday said no fewer than 16 people have died while over 200,000 others have been affected by torrential rains and riverine floods.

    OCHA said 10 other people are missing due to floods and no less than 2,000 farms have been swamped by water.

    “The rains are likely to increase the risk of water-borne diseases,” OCHA warned in its latest report on the impact of floods in Somalia.

    The forecast by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) indicated that the moderate to high flood risk would likely persist through mid-May.

    This, the UN says, threatens urban and riverine populations, including in BeletWeyne (Hiraan) and Jowhar (Middle Shabelle) of Hirshabelle state.

    According to the UN, river levels have risen along the Shabelle basin and there is a high risk of flooding in coming days and advised riverine communities in BeletWeyne to prepare for possible relocation during the week.

    READ ALSO: Jihadists bomb military convoy in surprise Somalia attacks

    The UN said the most impact has been felt in Puntland where a heavy downpour on April 27 killed eight people and displaced over 22,000 people, and in Galmudug where six people have died and about 22,000 others are affected by floods.

    It said over 100,000 people in South West State have been affected by floods while Jubaland has over 11,800 flood-affected displaced families reported in Lower Juba region.

    The UN agency warned that the ongoing Gu (rainy season)’s flooding will exacerbate the humanitarian situation, joining the COVID-19 pandemic and locust infestation to form a “Triple Threat”.

    It said disruptions to transport due to damaged roads and COVID-19 restrictions have pushed food prices up in some affected areas.

    (Xinhua/NAN)

  • Three rockets strike near Iraq’s Baghdad airport

    Three rockets strike near Iraq’s Baghdad airport

    Agency Reporter

     

    A military complex near Baghdad International Airport came under attack on Wednesday morning when it was targeted with three Katyusha-type rockets, according to Iraq’s military.

    The military base is used to house US forces and diplomats and in recent months attacks against US troops have increased around the country.

    There were no immediate claim of responsibility, but the Iraqi military said it found a rocket launcher with a timer in a rural area in western Baghdad. There are no reported causalities or damages.

    Baghdad’s airport has been closed since March after the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

    US, UK and Iraqi troops have become the target of rocket attacks for nearly six months. The last attack on a military base hosting foreign troops was in March.

    Washington blames Tehran for carrying out such attacks in the past.

    Since mid-March the US-led coalition has withdrawn from several bases across Iraq in a planned drawdown.

    The coalition transferred four bases to the Iraqi security forces as it consolidates its resources into a smaller number of key locations.

    Read Also: 343 terrorists, 153 bandits killed in two months, says Nigerian Military

    The decision was a result of the victory over ISIS but also in response to repeated attacks that have pushed the US into changing its direction in the country.

    The coronavirus outbreak is also thought to be speeding up the process as has halted most training programmes for Iraqi soldiers.

    US and Iran tensions have heightened over the last few months in Iraq after the killing of Iranian general Qassem Suleimani and Kataib Hezbollah founder Abu Mahdi Al Muhandis.

    They were killed in a US operation in Baghdad in early January, triggering a series of tit-for-tat attacks between the two in Iraq.

    Several US soldiers and contractors, as well as a British soldier, have died in attacks since the start of the year.

    Wednesday’s attack comes as Iraq’s parliament is preparing to hold a session to vote on Prime Minister-designate Mustafa Al Kadhimi’s new cabinet.

    For months political deadlock has held up the selection of an interim prime minister following the resignation of Adel Abdul Mahdi in November, who has since stayed on as caretaker.

     

    (www.newsnow.co.uk)