Ruling party's candidate wins Burundi's presidential poll

May 25, 2020

KIGALI, Rwanda (AP) — The candidate of Burundi's ruling party, Evariste Ndayishimiye, has been declared the winner of the country's presidential election. Ndayishimiye won with 69% of the vote in the election which took place on May 20, the country's election commission announced Monday. Because he garnered more than 50% of the vote, Ndayishimiye will not have to go to a runoff election and he is expected to be inaugurated in August.

Ndayishimiye, 52, will succeed President Pierre Nkurunziza, who has been in power since 2005. Both are from Burundi's ruling party which has said Nkurunziza will have the title “Supreme Guide” after he steps down from the presidency. Many believe that Nkurunziza will wield considerable influence over the new president.

Seven candidates contested the election in which ballots were cast by more than 4 million voters of Burundi's 11 million people, according to the election commission. The candidate coming in second place was Agathon Rwasa, leader of the opposition CNL, who got 24% of the vote, according to the election commission.

Rwasa said that the elections were marred by fraud with some districts reporting more votes than the number of registered voters. Rwasa also condemned the government's action to block social media on polling day, saying it could have encouraged election fraud.

“We fully reject and protest these results because we know very well our party won,” Aime Magera, a representative of Rwasa's CNL party told The Associated Press. Magera claimed his party won with 57% of the vote.

“We will go to court to challenge this,” Magera said. Some observers worry that disputed results could lead to the kind of violence that marked the previous vote in 2015. Ndayishimiye has been serving as the ruling party’s secretary-general and is an ally of Nkurunziza. He dropped out of university to fight alongside Nkurunziza in Burundi’s civil war. He later served as minister of interior.

“Ndayishimiye has worked for unity for many years and many Burundians have decided to give him chance,” said Desire Manirakiza in Gitega, Burundi’s capital city. Ndayishimiye is known for consulting the viewpoint of others but many political analysts say he is not expected to take any decisions different from Nkurunziza.

“He will be a clown,” said Jean Baptiste Bireha, a Burundian journalist who is in exile. Outgoing leader Nkurunziza surprised many when he agreed to step down last year. Early this year parliament agreed to award him with $530,000 and a luxury villa as well as his honorary title.

Nkurunziza rose to power in 2005 following the signing of the Arusha accords ending a 13-year civil war that killed about 300,000 people. He was re-elected unopposed in 2010 after the opposition boycotted the vote. He then claimed he was eligible for a third term in 2015 — a move that critics called unconstitutional.

Street demonstrations erupted against Nkurunziza's decision to run for a third term. The deadly turmoil that followed badly damaged global relations, and Burundi became the first country to leave the International Criminal Court after it started investigating allegations of abuses.

The U.N. human rights office reported more than 300 extrajudicial killings and was kicked out of the country. Burundi’s government has denied allegations it targets its people. Recently the Burundi government expelled the representative of the World Health Organization.

Protesters mass in Hong Kong before anthem law is debated

May 27, 2020

HONG KONG (AP) — Thousands of protesters shouted pro-democracy slogans and insults at police in Hong Kong before lawmakers later Wednesday debate a bill criminalizing abuse of the Chinese national anthem in the semi-autonomous city.

Police massed outside the legislative building ahead of the meeting and warned protesters that if they did not disperse, they could be prosecuted. In the Central business district, police raised flags warning protesters to disperse, before they shot pepper balls at protesters and searched several people. More than 50 people in the Causeway Bay shopping district were rounded up and made to sit outside a shopping mall, while riot police patrolled and warned journalists to stop filming while brandishing pepper spray.

At least 16 people, most of them teenagers, were arrested on charges of possessing items fit for unlawful purposes, such as petrol bombs and screwdrivers. Three of the people arrested were charged for dangerous driving.

Lawmakers were to debate a bill that would make it illegal to insult or abuse the “March of the Volunteers” in the semi-autonomous Chinese city. Those found guilty could face up to three years in prison and a maximum fine of HK$50,000 (US$6,450).

The bill was proposed in January 2019 after Hong Kong spectators jeered at the anthem during high-profile, international soccer matches in 2015. Last year, FIFA fined the Hong Kong Football Association after fans booed the Chinese national anthem at a World Cup qualifying game.

Hong Kong was returned to China from British colonial rule in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” framework that promised freedoms not found on the mainland. Anti-China sentiment has risen as residents see Beijing moving to erode those rights.

Mass protests in 2014, known as the Umbrella Revolution, followed the Chinese government’s decision to allow direct election of the city leader only after it screened candidates. In the end, the plan for direct elections was dropped.

Legislation proposed in Hong Kong last year that would have allowed Hong Kong residents to be sent to mainland China for trials set off months of demonstrations that at times involved clashes between protesters and police. The legislation was withdrawn.

China's ceremonial parliament now meeting in Beijing has moved to enact a national security law for Hong Kong, aimed at forbidding secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. Hong Kong's own government has been unable to pass such legislation due to the opposition in the city, but Beijing advanced the law itself after the protests last year.

Opponents of the anthem bill say it is a blow to freedom of expression in the city, while Beijing officials previously said that the law would foster a patriotic spirit and the country’s socialist core values.

Israeli defense minister apologizes for Palestinian's death

June 01, 2020

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's defense minister apologized on Sunday for the Israeli police's deadly shooting of an unarmed Palestinian man who was autistic. The shooting of Iyad Halak, 32, in Jerusalem's Old City on Saturday, drew broad condemnations and revived complaints alleging excessive force by Israeli security forces.

Benny Gantz, who is also Israel's “alternate” prime minister under a power-sharing deal, made the remarks at the weekly meeting of the Israeli Cabinet. He sat near Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who made no mention of the incident in his opening remarks.

“We are really sorry about the incident in which Iyad Halak was shot to death and we share in the family's grief,” Gantz said. “I am sure this subject will be investigated swiftly and conclusions will be reached.”

Halak's relatives said he had autism and was heading to a school for students with special needs where he studied each day when he was shot. In a statement, Israeli police said they spotted a suspect “with a suspicious object that looked like a pistol.” When he failed to obey orders to stop, officers opened fire, the statement said. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld later said no weapon was found.

Israeli media reported the officers involved were questioned after the incident as per protocol and a lawyer representing one of them sent his condolences to the family in an interview with Israeli Army Radio.

Lone Palestinian attackers with no clear links to armed groups have carried out a series of stabbings, shootings and car-ramming attacks in recent years. Palestinians and Israeli human rights groups have long accused Israeli security forces of using excessive force in some cases, either by killing individuals who could have been arrested or using lethal force when their lives were not in danger.

Some pro-Palestinian activists compared Saturday's shooting to the recent cases of police violence in the U.S.

Israeli leader vows to push ahead with annexing West Bank

May 25, 2020

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday pledged to annex parts of the occupied West Bank in the coming months, vowing to move ahead with the explosive plan despite a growing chorus of condemnations by key allies.

The Palestinians, with wide international backing, seek the entire West Bank as the heartland of a future independent state. Annexing large chunks of this territory would all but destroy the faint remaining hopes of a two-state solution.

In an apparent reference to the friendly administration of President Donald Trump, Netanyahu said Israel had a “historic opportunity” to redraw the Mideast map that could not be missed. Israeli media quoted him as saying he would act in July.

“This is an opportunity that we will not let pass,” he told members of his conservative Likud party. He added that the “historic opportunity” to annex the West Bank had never before occurred since Israel's founding in 1948.

The comments threatened to push Israel closer to a confrontation with Arab and European partners, and could deepen what is becoming a growing partisan divide over Israel in Washington. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war. It has settled nearly 500,000 Jewish settlers in the territory, but never formally claimed it as an Israeli territory due to stiff international opposition.

But the Trump administration has taken a much softer line toward Israeli settlements than its predecessors. Trump's Mideast team is dominated by advisers with close ties to the settlements, and his Mideast plan, unveiled in January, envisions leaving some 30% of the territory under permanent Israeli control while giving the Palestinians expanded autonomy in the rest of the area. The Palestinians have rejected the plan, saying it is unfairly biased toward Israel.

With Trump's re-election prospects uncertain this November, Israeli hard-liners have urged Netanyahu to move ahead with annexation quickly. The Israeli leader's new coalition deal includes an official clause allowing him to present his annexation plan to the government in July.

Netanyahu told party members in a closed-door meeting that “we have a target date for July and we don’t intend to change it," Likud officials said. The plan has already exposed a partisan divide in Washington. Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee in the U.S. presidential elections, recently said that annexation would “choke off” hopes for a two-state solution. 18 Democratic senators warned in a letter this week that annexation could harm U.S.-Israeli ties.

The EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, has said annexation would violate international law and vowed to use “all our diplomatic capacities” to stop it. Closer to home, the Palestinians last week cut off security ties — a valuable tool in a shared struggled against Islamic militants — with Israel to protest the annexation plan.

Saudi Arabia, an influential Arab country that maintains behind-the-scenes relations with Israel, announced its “rejection of the Israeli measures and plans to annex Palestinian lands.” The Arab League has condemned it as a “war crime,” and both Jordan and Egypt — the only two Arab countries at peace with Israel — have harshly criticized it.

Netanyahu spoke a day after beginning his trial on corruption charges. The prime minister launched a blistering tirade against the country's legal system when he arrived at court, accusing police, prosecutors and media of conspiring to oust him. As he spoke, hundreds of supporters cheered outside.

Speaking to Likud on Monday, Netanyahu said he was “very moved” by the support. Critics have said his attacks on the justice system risk undermining the country's democratic foundations.

New Zealand leader carries on with TV interview during quake

May 25, 2020

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern barely skipped a beat when an earthquake struck during a live television interview Monday morning. She interrupted Newshub host Ryan Bridge to tell him what was happening at the parliament complex in the capital, Wellington.

“We’re just having a bit of an earthquake here Ryan, quite a decent shake here,” she said, looking up and around the room. “But, um, if you see things moving behind me.” New Zealand sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire and is sometimes called the Shaky Isles for its frequent quakes.

Monday's magnitude 5.6 quake struck in the ocean about 100 kilometers (62 miles) northeast of Wellington, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The quake hit just before 8 a.m. and was felt by thousands of New Zealanders who were getting ready to start their work weeks. It was strong enough to rattle food from shelves and stop train services.

But there were no reports of major damage or injuries. Ardern continued on with her interview, telling the host the shaking had stopped. “We’re fine Ryan,” she said. “I’m not under any hanging lights, I look like I’m in a structurally sound place.”

Ardern, who has been leading the country's health and economic response to the coronavirus pandemic, said later that the thought going through her head when the quake struck was: “Are you serious?” A 2011 quake in the city of Christchurch killed 185 people and destroyed much of the downtown area. The city is continuing to rebuild.

Finland in pain as border closure blocks Russian tourists

June 01, 2020

HELSINKI, Finland (AP) — Finns in the Nordic nation's eastern border region say they haven't seen anything like this since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. The closure of Finland’s border with Russia amid the coronavirus pandemic has put an abrupt stop to visits by the nearly 2 million Russian tourists who prop up the local economy each year.

Finland shares a 1,340-kilometer (832-mile) land border with Russia complete with several crossing points in what is one of the European Union’s longest external borders. It was shut down both by Helsinki and Moscow in mid-March due to the pandemic.

Given Russia’s sustained infection rate, there is little hope that the border will be opened for Finland’s summer tourism season — and many believe the border will likely remain shut even longer. “It definitely has had a big effect. You just wouldn’t imagine such risks relate to the border anymore in the year 2020,” said Petteri Terho, spokesman for the Zsar Outlet Village, a large upscale shopping area catering to both Finns and Russians near the Vaalimaa border station, the busiest crossing point between the two nations.

The closure has caused cross-border tourism to the South Karelia region, entry point to Finland’s picturesque lake district that is a favorite of locals and Russian tourists alike, to collapse overnight.

Above all, it has deprived local businesses of an estimated 25 million euros ($28 million) for every month the border remains closed. Finland has seen 6,859 cases of COVID-19 and 320 deaths but most have been in and around Helsinki, the capital. But in the South Karelia region, 250 kilometers (155 miles) northeast of Helsinki, only 24 positive cases have been diagnosed, with no fatalities so far.

Russia has over 405,000 coronavirus infections, the third-highest number in the world. It has reported 4,693 virus deaths, a figure experts call a significant undercount of the true situation.

“This is a whole new situation for all of us,” said Katja Vehvilainen of the Imatra Region Development Company, a local Finnish business promotion agency, adding that the South Karelia region enjoyed a growth of 15% in tourism last year. “The corona situation has unfortunately completely changed the direction.”

Still, locals remain unfazed, given Finland’s long history of dealing with the ups and downs of Russian tourism in the wake of its neighbor’s political and economic upheavals. The last tourism crisis hitting South Karelia took place in 2014-2015 when the value of the Russian rouble plunged against the euro, instantly denting visits by Russians.

“It looks pretty bad now,” said Markku Heinonen, development manager for the city of Lappeenranta, the region’s biggest center with 73,000 residents. “But the previous crises (with Russian tourism) have taught companies to prepare for something like this.”

The region hosted 1.9 million foreign tourists last year, most coming from Russia for shopping daytrips or longer holidays to enjoy spas, restaurants and lakeside cottages in an area known for its pristine beauty.

Lappeenranta, a key center for wood products, has been dealing with Russia since it was founded in 1649. It's just 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the border station of Nuijamaa. From there, it’s mere 180 kilometers (112 miles) to Russia’s second city of St. Petersburg, whose population of nearly 5.5 million equals the entire population of Finland.

“Our business has dried up almost completely. One can say it melted away in one day (after the border closure),” said Mohamad Darwich, who runs the Laplandia Market, a grocery store catering to Russian tourists near the Nuijamaa border post.

Darwich, who arrived in Finland from Russia in 1992 after studying in St. Petersburg, listed fresh fish, cheese and dishwashing liquid among the most popular items bought by Russian visitors. He has reopened the store now for locals and hopes the border will be reopened by October at the latest “under an optimistic scenario.”

Citing a recent study, Heinonen said if the border stays closed until the end of the year or even beyond — a worst-case scenario — the South Karelia region is estimated to lose at least 225 million euros ($247 million) in tourism income this year and risks losing about 900 jobs, a large number in this region.

Locals are now eyeing domestic or European visitors as possible substitutes for the missing Russians this year. Ryanair, which suspended its European routes from Lappeenranta until further notice due to the pandemic, has indicated it’s ready to resume some flights in July, which could bring in western European tourists. But even the Irish airline has largely catered to Russian clients living near the Finnish border who used the Lappeenranta airport.

“There are plenty of summer cottages in the area and holidaying Finns around, so domestic travel is absolutely crucial for us,” said Terho, the Zsar Outlet Village spokesman. He said the venue reopened Saturday with high hopes following the Finnish government’s gradual relaxation of coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

UN forced to cut aid to Yemen, even as virus increases need

June 01, 2020

CAIRO (AP) — Aid organizations are making an urgent plea for funding to shore up their operations in war-torn Yemen, saying they have already been forced to stop some of their work even as the coronavirus rips through the country.

Some 75% of U.N. programs in Yemen have had to shut their doors or reduce operations. The global body's World Food Program had to cut rations in half and U.N.-funded health services were reduced in 189 out of 369 hospitals nationwide.

“It’s almost impossible to look a family in the face, to look them in the eyes and say, ‘I’m sorry but the food that you need in order to survive we have to cut in half,’” Lise Grande, resident U.N. coordinator for Yemen, told The Associated Press.

The dwindling funds are the result of several factors, but among the top reasons is obstruction by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who control the capital, Sanaa, and other territories. The United States, one of the largest donors, decreased its aid to Yemen earlier this year, citing interference by the Houthis.

It’s yet to be seen whether the Houthis will allow monitoring and oversight or give U.N. agencies the space to operate. A U.N. pledging conference for Yemen on Tuesday seeks $2.41 billion to cover essential activities from June to December.

Grande said the Houthis are working to become more transparent, and that she hopes this will encourage donor countries to give aid. Her optimism, however, comes as the Houthis face heavy criticism for suppressing information about the number of COVID-19 cases and fatalities in areas they control, while putting no mitigation measures in place.

Tuesday's conference will be co-hosted for the first time by Saudi Arabia — a major player in Yemen’s civil war since it first unleashed a bombing campaign in 2015 to try to push back the Iranian-backed Houthis who had seized the northern half of the country.

Critics question the Saudis' high-profile role in rallying humanitarian support even as they continue to wage a war — as do the Houthis — that has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Maysaa Shuja al-Deen, a Yemeni researcher and a non-resident fellow at the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies, said the kingdom is trying to repair its international image by changing the conversation.

Saudi Arabia “has always tried to change the narrative of the war and present itself as a backer of the legitimate government, not part of the conflict,” she said. In past years, the kingdom has been one of the top donors for U.N. humanitarian aid operations in Yemen. The Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed al-Jaber, said the kingdom will allocate half a billion dollars this year to support U.N. programs, including $25 million for a COVID-19 response plan.

The U.N. itself has also investigated allegations of corruption and diversion of aid in Yemen in its own ranks. Reports indicate that the coronavirus is spreading at an alarming rate throughout the country.

Among the slashed programs is financial support to thousands of health workers who haven’t received salaries from the government for nearly three years. Grande said that just a week before the first coronavirus case was announced in Yemen, aid agencies had to stop paying health workers.

Without salaries, medical staff won’t be able to provide health services to patients amid the pandemic. The U.N. received around $3.6 billion in 2019 in international donations for its campaign, short of its $4.2 billion goal. For its 2020 plan, it has so far received only 15% out of the needed $3.5 billion.

Yemen has been caught in a grinding war since 2014 when Houthi rebels descended from their northern enclave and took over Sanaa, forcing the internationally recognized president to flee. In the spring of 2015, a U.S.-backed, Saudi-led coalition began a destructive air campaign to dislodge the Houthis while imposing a land, sea and air embargo on Yemen.

The air war and fighting on the ground has killed more than 100,000 people, shut down or destroyed half of Yemen’s health facilities, and driven 4 million Yemenis from their homes. Cholera epidemics and severe malnutrition among children have led to thousands of additional deaths.

As the war enters its sixth year, with no sign of a viable cease-fire, the suffering looks set to continue. Fighting has continued unabated along several front lines in Yemen, including in Marib, an oil-rich eastern province, threatening new waves of displacement.

The U.N.’s massive aid program, totaling $8.35 billion since 2015, is vital to keeping many Yemenis alive. Ten million people are on the brink of famine and 80% of the 30 million population are in need of aid, according to the U.N.

With the coronavirus spreading, more money is needed. Since April, authorities in areas controlled by Yemen’s internationally recognized government reported 283 cases, including 85 deaths. The Houthis declared only four cases, including one death.

The World Health Organization believes that there is a significant underestimation of the outbreak, which could further hinder efforts to get supplies into Yemen that are needed to contain the virus. Richard Brennan, the WHO’s regional emergency director, told the AP that he believes the deaths are in the hundreds and cases in the thousands, based on what he’s heard from numerous health care providers. But he said the lack of funding means the organization’s health programs are hanging by a thread.

The International Rescue Committee, an aid group, said Yemen is conducting just 31 tests per one million people, among the world's lowest scores. With increasing needs and fewer funds, the U.N. refugee agency will have to stop cash assistance and shelter programs for more than 50,000 displaced families by August, said spokeswoman Heba Kanso. She said the agency will be forced to end its partnership with dozens of Yemeni NGOs that will have let go more than 1,500 national staff.

Relief agencies worry that donors will give less as many countries struggle their own virus outbreaks. But they warn that the world’s worst humanitarian crisis can indeed get much worse. “The world's attention is diverted elsewhere and these are the vulnerable among the most vulnerable on the planet, and we need a commitment,” said Brennan.

Protests spark virus fears in US; South Korea sees new cases

June 01, 2020

MIAMI (AP) — Protests around the U.S. against police brutality have sparked fears of a further spread of the coronavirus, while South Korea is reporting a steady rise in cases around the capital after appearing to bring the outbreak under control.

The often-violent protests over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was pinned at the neck by a white Minneapolis police officer, are raising fears of new virus outbreaks in a country that has more confirmed infections and deaths than any other.

The protests come as more beaches, churches, mosques, schools and businesses reopen worldwide, increasing the risk of cross-infections. South Korea has reported 238 cases of the coronavirus over the past five days, most of them in the Seoul metropolitan area, causing alarm in a country that had eased up on social distancing and started to send millions of children back to school. Hundreds of infections have been linked to nightspots, restaurants and a massive e-commerce warehouse near Seoul. The 35 new cases reported Monday include 30 around Seoul.

Protests over Floyd’s death have shaken the U.S. from New York to Los Angeles. Demonstrators are packed cheek by jowl, many without masks, many chanting, shouting or singing. The virus is dispersed by microscopic droplets in the air when people cough, sneeze, talk or sing.

“There’s no question that when you put hundreds or thousands of people together in close proximity, when we have got this virus all over the streets ... it’s not healthy,” Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

The U.S. has seen more than 1.7 million infections and over 104,000 deaths in the pandemic, which has disproportionately affected racial minorities in a nation that does not have universal health care.

In London, thousands of people marched Sunday, chanting “No justice! No peace!” while carrying signs reading “Justice for George Floyd” and “Racism is a global issue.” Britain has had nearly 38,500 virus deaths, the second-most in the world after the United States.

Other protests were held in Berlin and Copenhagen, Denmark. Around 6.1 million infections have been reported worldwide, with about 370,000 people dying, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The true death toll is believed to be significantly higher, since many victims died of the virus without ever being tested.

China, where the global pandemic is believed to have originated late last year, reported 16 new cases on Monday, all in travelers newly arrived from abroad. Eleven of those arrived in the southwestern city of Chengdu on Friday aboard the same flight from Cairo, the Chengdu city government said in a statement.

With local transmissions having fallen to virtually zero, much of China has reopened for business and Monday saw the further restart of classes in middle and high schools. Kindergartners and fourth- and fifth-graders will be allowed back next week as part of a staggered opening to prevent the further spread of the virus.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says that China has pledged to make available 30 million COVID-19 testing kits per month to African countries, which are facing a shortage of the materials to test for the disease.

The U.S. has sent to Brazil more than 2 million doses of a malaria drug touted by President Donald Trump as potentially protecting against and treating the coronavirus, despite a lack of scientific evidence. Brazil, Latin America’s hardest-hit country, continues to see a surge in virus cases, and last week Trump announced that the U.S. was restricting travel from the country.

Traffic jams and crowds of commuters are back in the Philippine capital, which shifted to a more relaxed quarantine in a high-stakes gamble to slowly reopen the economy while fighting the coronavirus outbreak.

The situation continues to worsen in India, where 230 new deaths were reported Monday, bringing the country's total to 5,394, even as it eases restrictions on shops and public transport in more states beginning Monday. Subways and schools remain closed.

Neighboring Bangladesh also restarted bus, train, ferry and flight services Monday. The impoverished country's government says a gradual reopening is crucial to reviving the economy amid forecasts that economic growth is likely to plunge, leaving millions jobless.

In Saudi Arabia, mosques reopened Sunday for the first time in more than two months, but Islam’s holiest site in Mecca remained closed. In Jerusalem, throngs of worshippers waited outside the Al-Aqsa Mosque before it reopened. Many wore surgical masks and waited for temperature checks as they entered.

In Bogota, Colombia's capital, authorities were locking down an area of nearly 1.5 million people as cases continued to rise, while Egypt on Sunday reported its highest-ever number of infections and deaths from the virus — 46 over the previous 24 hours, with 1,536 confirmed cases.

In Spain, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Sunday that he would ask Parliament for a final two-week extension of the nation’s state of emergency that is set to expire on June 7. That allows the government to keep ordering lockdown measures to control its coronavirus outbreak, which has claimed at least 27,000 lives, many of them in overwhelmed nursing homes.

“We have almost reached safe harbor,” Sánchez said. During a Mass at the Vatican to mark Pentecost Sunday, Pope Francis cautioned people against being pessimistic as they emerge from coronavirus lockdowns.

Italy on Sunday registered 355 new coronavirus cases and 75 deaths, some of the lowest such numbers since the nation’s lockdown against the pandemic began in early March. Two hospitals for coronavirus patients were opened in Istanbul as Turkey’s number of new cases fell to its lowest since the peak of the outbreak.

And at California's Yosemite National Park, closed to the public for nearly three months, student journalists who put out the Yosemite Valley School newspaper are charming their community with stories of cleaner water and more active and abundant wildlife.

Kirka reported from London and Gorondi reported from Budapest, Hungary. AP reporters from around the world contributed to this report.

Virus count revised, new clusters emerge as France reopens

May 29, 2020

PARIS (AP) — France’s national health agency reported a sudden jump in new virus infections -- just an hour after the prime minister announced a sweeping national reopening plan. The agency clarified Friday that the surprising new figures were the result of a new accounting method, and not linked to a much-feared second wave of the virus.

But they highlighted concerns about the French government’s handling of the crisis, and served as a reminder that infections are continuing in one of the countries hit hardest by the pandemic. “We are where we had hoped to be at the end of May, and maybe a little better,” Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said Thursday, as he announced that r estaurants, museums and parks could reopen next week for the first time since March. “It’s good news, but not good enough for everything to return to normal.”

Statistics released Friday showed 96 virus clusters have emerged around France since the government started easing confinement measures May 11. They are primarily in medical facilities, businesses and shelters.

And the virus remains a serious risk in two overseas French regions, where health care is weaker and poverty higher than on the mainland: the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte and French Guiana on South America’s Caribbean coast.

Overall COVID-19 is receding in France, with the number of virus patients in intensive care dropping every day since April 8 and now at 1,429. But the public health agency DGS quietly released figures Thursday night showing a rise of more than 3,000 new infections from the day before – the biggest such jump in more than three weeks.

That puzzled epidemiologists like Dr. Laurent Toubiana, who has been closely following the curve of the virus in European countries, and thinks the epidemic is petering out in France. “It's incomprehensible," he said.

The DGS then said Friday the new cases included positive tests registered under a “better, more exhaustive” counting system put in place May 13, and did not correspond to a single-day rise. It insisted there are “no signs in favor of a return of the epidemic.”

France has confirmed 149,071 cases so far, though the government acknowledges the real number of infections is much higher because of limited testing. The French government came under criticism for not testing widely enough earlier in the pandemic. It is now testing more than 200,000 people a week, according to the health agency.

Death figures are also difficult to pin down. France has reported 28,662 deaths overall in hospitals and nursing homes, and the state statistics agency Insee on Friday reported a 26% rise in overall deaths in March and April from all causes compared to the same period in 2019.

In May, it said the number of overall deaths in France is down 6% so far, though finalized death figures usually lag by a few weeks, so the number could still rise. “During this whole epidemic, we have had intense problems of viability of data,” Toubiana said.

As scientists try to determine why the pandemic is taking longer than expected to end, he said, “We are all trying with the means we have to understand this phenomenon.”

Veterans help UK children keep calm, cope with virus stress

May 29, 2020

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Hula hoops, camouflage mats and tires aren't typical supplies needed during the coronavirus pandemic. But they’re useful props as British army veteran Mike Hamilton prepares to lead children in a military-style game designed to boost their resilience and mental health at a time of atypical stress.

Hamilton, who served with bomb disposal teams in Afghanistan and Iraq, is working with 10 children in a schoolyard in Manchester, England. The mission: Picking up the virus — a small ball — with wooden blocks, racing to a trash can and dropping the ball inside before pretending to wash their hands.

It’s one of many games devised by Hamilton, the founder of a company called Commando Joe's that sends former soldiers to U.K. schools to guide exercises in teamwork, dealing with adversity and staying calm under pressure. The firm, which is partly funded by the government, works with hundreds of schools. Hamilton says that since the pandemic began, he has received many calls from teachers looking for lessons to help their overwhelmed students cope.

“Schools are wanting programs to focus on character, mental health and well-being and probably getting the children used to having a routine again,” he said. “We’ve got lots of tactics to help build up positivity in a time of stress — that’s part of our training.”

In Britain, schools never completely closed during the virus lockdown. Some remained open for students whose parents still had to work outside home in key professions, as well as for children under social care.

The familiar routine may be reassuring, but it's an unsettling time for many of these children. Playgrounds and classrooms typically bustling with hundreds of kids are now hushed and quiet. Sienna-Leigh Murphy attends school while her mother goes to work as a nurse. Her parents are separated.

“I feel happy because she looks after people and makes sure they don’t die or anything,” Sienna-Leigh said. “I do miss playing with my friends and going to places that are really fun with my friends like the park or something. And I really miss my dad.”

Sophie Murfin, executive headteacher at the Wise Owl Trust, which includes three schools in Manchester, says the key was giving the children a friendly and positive environment. “It’s about ensuring the children’s worries are alleviated by giving them different activities to complete in a fun and engaging way,” Murfin said.

Childline, a helpline run by Britain’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, said thousands of youngsters have reached out to speak to counselors about the coronavirus. The charity said children have called about parents losing their jobs, worrying about their family’s health and struggling to look after younger siblings while their parents are ill.

Many children stuck at home while schools are closed and most public activities are prohibited are affected by isolation, experts warn. “When asked what they would do to manage stress, a quarter of those children who ever feel stressed said that they would normally go outside. Now, this option is only very limited,” Children’s Commissioner for England Anne Longfield wrote last month.

Children who don’t have access to smartphones and laptops for video calls with friends and family members are more isolated than ever, she added. For his part, Hamilton says he hopes his exercises help kids understand “it's OK not to be OK.” Eight-year-old Sonny Turner, who took part in the “catch the virus” game, said it gave him a confidence boost.

“It makes me feel confident about not feeling coronavirus is going to get me," Turner said.

French carmaker Renault announces 15,000 job cuts worldwide

May 29, 2020

PARIS (AP) — Struggling French carmaker Renault on Friday announced 15,000 job cuts worldwide as part of a 2 billion-euro cost-cutting plan over three years. Renault said on Friday that nearly 4,600 jobs will be cut in France in addition to more than 10,000 in the rest of the world.

The group's global production capacity will be revised from 4 million vehicles in 2019 to 3.3 million by 2024, the company said. “The difficulties encountered by the group, the major crisis facing the automotive industry and the urgency of the ecological transition are all imperatives that are driving the company to accelerate its transformation,” the statement said.

Jean-Dominique Senard, chairman of the board of directors of Renault, said “the planned changes are fundamental to ensure the sustainability of the company and its development over the long term.” The group, which employs 180,000 workers worldwide, announced the suspension of planned capacity increase projects in Morocco and Romania.

The group is also considering “adaptation” of its production capacities in Russia and announced the halt of Renault-branded oil-powered car activities in China. Renault came into the coronavirus crisis in particularly bad shape: Its alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi is a major global auto player but has struggled since the 2018 arrest of its longtime star CEO Carlos Ghosn.

Renault reported its first losses in years in 2019. The French government is its single biggest shareholder with a 15-percent stake, and has been in talks on a 5 billion-euro loan guarantee. Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire earlier this week that the group’s survival is at stake.

Communion ritual unchanged in Orthodox Church despite virus

May 29, 2020

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — One by one, the children and adults line up for the centuries-old ritual of Holy Communion, trying to keep a proper social distance. The priest dips a spoon into the chalice of bread and wine, which the faithful believe is the body and blood of Christ, and puts it into the mouth of the first person in line.

Then, with a move that would alarm an epidemiologist, he dips the spoon back into the chalice and then into the next person’s mouth. Again and again, through the entire congregation. Contrary to what science says, the Greek Orthodox Church insists it is impossible for any disease — including the coronavirus — to be transmitted through Holy Communion.

“In the holy chalice, it isn’t bread and wine. It is the body and blood of Christ,” said the Rev. Georgios Milkas, a theologian in the northern city of Thessaloniki. “And there is not a shred of suspicion of transmitting this virus, this disease, as in the holy chalice there is the Son and the Word of God.”

This is proven, he said, through "the experience of centuries.” Scientists warn that shared utensils can spread the coronavirus, and they also point to outbreaks linked to religious services around the world.

A communal spoon presents “fairly significant dangers,” said Dr. Nathalie MacDermott, an academic clinical lecturer for Britain's National Institute for Health Research at King's College London. “The danger of transmitting any kind of respiratory viral pathogen or even bacterial infections is quite high with the sharing of utensils,” she said. “And for it to be passed among what is probably a relatively large group of people means that all it would take is one person to have coronavirus at the back of their throat, which potentially is in their saliva as well.”

The Holy Synod, the church’s governing body, says any suggestion that illness or disease could be transmitted by Holy Communion is blasphemy, a stance echoed by the Church of Cyprus. “Regarding the issue that is unjustifiably raised from time to time about the supposed dangers, which in these blasphemous views are said to lurk in the life-giving Mystery of Holy Communion, the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece expresses its bitterness, deep sorrow and diametrical opposition,” it said in a May 13 circular on social distancing measures in churches.

The Synod “underlines one more time to all those who, either due to ignorance or conscious faithlessness, brutally insult all that is holy and sacred, the dogmas and the sacred rules of our faith, that Holy Communion is ‘the medicine of immortality, antidote to not dying, but to living according to the teachings of Jesus Christ forever.’”

Whether Holy Communion should be changed or suspended for health reasons has become a hot button issue across much of the Christian Orthodox world, with churches generally refusing to bow to pressure from governments and scientists.

Some concessions were made in Russia. In mid-March, the Russian Orthodox Church released instructions on adjusting the sacrament during the pandemic. Priests were told to wear gloves when handing out the bread, to disinfect the spoon and to use disposable cups for the wine.

In Ethiopia, which has the largest Orthodox Christian flock outside Europe, the ritual is unchanged, as it is in the Georgian Orthodox Church. In response to public pressure against using a common spoon, the Georgian church noted the tradition is thousands of years old.

“Throughout these years, there have been many cases of life-threatening infections, during which Orthodox believers did not fear but strived even harder to get Communion through a common chalice and a common spoon,” it said in a statement.

In Greece, a firebrand priest, former Metropolitan Ambrosios, said he had excommunicated the education minister, prime minister and the civil protection deputy minister — the first for suggesting the coronavirus could be transmitted through saliva during Holy Communion, and the other two for closing churches during the lockdown. The Holy Synod did not back him up, however, saying only it had the authority to excommunicate.

Greece imposed a lockdown early on, a move credited with curbing infections. The country has reported 175 deaths and 2,900 confirmed cases. But many of the faithful chafed under the lockdown that closed places of worship for all religions for about two months. It ran through Easter, the most important religious holiday for Christians, and the inability to attend services weighed heavily on many.

When it was lifted May 17, thousands flocked to church. “The issue of Holy Communion in particular is the only red line of the church and of the faithful in our souls,” said 19-year-old Michalis Gkolemis, attending services in Thessaloniki. “We don’t say that Holy Communion is the cure for all diseases, from the flu, for example, but we say that you cannot get sick by receiving Communion. You can’t catch a virus, something which isn’t proven scientifically but exists through experience.”

After ordering churches closed, the government has been more circumspect and has avoided the sensitive issue of Holy Communion. The limited spread of the virus also has reduced the risk of a renewed outbreak, at least for now.

For scientists, concern is tempered by knowing that opposing the powerful Orthodox Church, with a majority of Greeks as believers, could be counterproductive. “This is a matter of public health concern,” said Dr. Gkikas Magiorkinis, assistant professor of hygiene and epidemiology at the University of Athens. “As an epidemiologist, I would like to be able to reduce the risk of transmission.”

But changing the minds of the faithful is “very difficult,” he said. “It’s a matter that can only be solved through discussion, and theological discussion rather than scientific discussion. Scientific discussion never helped, and it might have even worse results.”

Discussions with the church were always open, said Magiorkinis, who also advises the government on the virus. “Only the church can provide a solution,” he said. —- Kantouris reported from Thessaloniki. Associated Press writers Daria Litvinova in Moscow; Elias Meseret in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Sophiko Megrelidze in Tiblisi, Georgia; and Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus, contributed.

PM praises 'prominent role' of National Anti-Pandemic Committee in virus fight

By JT - May 28,2020

AMMAN — Decisions and measures implemented by the government to deal with the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic are mainly based on the recommendations of the National Anti-Pandemic Committee, Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Omar Razzaz said on Thursday.

Chairing a meeting of the committee at the Prime Ministry, Razzaz stressed that the government has adopted the majority of the committee’s recommendations, turning them into decisions and measures to confront the pandemic, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The prime minister noted that these decisions have taken into consideration health, security and economic and social aspects in a way that meets greater national interests.

The premier praised the “great efforts” of the committee and the teams working in the field, which have played a “prominent role” in taking measures and immediate precautions that have contributed to mitigating the impact of the pandemic in the Kingdom.

Industry, Trade and Supply Minister Tareq Hammouri said that the work sustainability committee is awaiting the recommendations of the anti-pandemic committee and the possibility to implement them.

Health Minister Saad Jaber said that the committee has been a “main partner” to the government in combating the pandemic even before it reached the Kingdom, noting that several proactive medical measures that Jordan adopted have made the Kingdom a “model” in fighting the disease.

Members of the committee referred to the possibility that the Kingdom will see a rise in case numbers, highlighting the importance of following preventive measures, particularly social distancing, in markets and closed places and wearing face masks.

Source: The Jordan Times.
Link: http://jordantimes.com/news/local/pm-praises-%E2%80%98prominent-role%E2%80%99-national-anti-pandemic-committee-virus-fight.

Mosques, churches to reopen next week

By JT - May 28,2020

AMMAN — Officials on Thursday announced that mosques and churches in the Kingdom will open their doors according to health and public safety measures next week.

Speaking during a press conference at the Prime Ministry on Thursday, Minister of State for Media Affairs Amjad Adaileh said that Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Omar Razzaz chaired a Cabinet meeting dedicated to discussing the recommendations of the National Anti-Pandemic Committee.

The meeting resulted in a decision to reopen mosques on June 5 according to health and public safety measures, Adaileh said, noting that the regulations for comprehensive curfews will be amended as of June 5 to allow people to go to mosques on foot on Fridays.

The minister also noted that the government is considering other recommendations to reopen more sectors, stressing that this “does not mean that the threat is gone” and that such a decision would result in increased case numbers.

He called on people to wear masks while visiting public and private departments and to adopt public safety measures.

Awqaf Minister Mohammad Khalaileh, also speaking at the conference, said that in the first phase of reopening mosques, only Friday prayers will be allowed to take place according to certain public safety measures that will be announced later, stressing that people must wear masks and take their prayer rugs with them upon visiting the mosques.

Khalaileh called on those aged 50 and above and those with illnesses not to go to mosques. He also said that Friday sermons will not exceed 10 minutes and guides for safety measures will be distributed to mosques for the congregation to follow.

Results of this initial reopening will be evaluated before the authorities open mosques for all prayers, he said.

Also speaking at the conference, President of the Jordan Churches Council Archbishop Christophorus Attallah announced that churches in the Kingdom will reopen on June 7, calling on the elderly and those who are sick to avoid attending churches.

Meanwhile, Jordan registered eight new coronavirus infections on Thursday, increasing the caseload to 728 since the outbreak of the pandemic, Health Minister Saad Jaber said at the conference.

Jaber noted that the new cases include two truck drivers at the Omari border crossing, one of whom is Jordanian and was transferred to Prince Hamzah Hospital.

Six Jordanians who recently returned to the Kingdom from Russia also tested positive for the virus, the minister added.

A total of 11 people left hospitals on Thursday, increasing the number of recovered patients to 497 and leaving 162 currently receiving treatment, he said, noting that epidemiological investigation teams conducted 3,100 tests nationwide on Thursday.

Source: The Jordan Times.
Link: http://jordantimes.com/news/local/mosques-churches-reopen-next-week.

Virus expands grip in many areas, as US nears 100,000 deaths

May 27, 2020

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea reported its highest number of new coronavirus infections in weeks on Wednesday and India reported another record single-day jump of more than 6,000 cases, as the pandemic expanded its grip across much of the globe.

Still, optimism over reopening economies from business shutdowns to fight the virus spurred a rally on Wall Street, even as the official U.S. death toll approached 100,000. Outbreaks are still climbing in much of the Americas, while many countries in Asia and much of Europe are making steady progress in containing the deadliest pandemic in a century.

New Zealand's Ministry of Health reported Wednesday that there were no COVID-19 patients under treatment in hospitals. The nation took aggressive and early action to stop transmissions and has reported only 21 deaths. It has 21 active cases out of 1,504 confirmed and probable ones.

In South Korea, 40 newly confirmed cases — the biggest daily jump in nearly 50 days — raised alarm as millions of children were returning to school. All but four of the new cases were in the densely populated Seoul region, where officials are scrambling to stop transmissions linked to nightclubs, karaoke rooms and an e-commerce warehouse. South Korea has reported 269 deaths and 11,265 cases, after managing to contain a severe earlier outbreak.

Authorities were testing 3,600 employees of a local e-commerce giant, Coupang, after discovering dozens of coronavirus infections linked to workers at the company’s warehouse near Seoul. India saw another record single-day jump, reporting 6,387 new cases on Wednesday, as the government prepared new guidelines for the next phase of a 2-month-old national lockdown that is due to end on Sunday.

In the Americas, from Mexico to Chile, health officials were reporting surging coronavirus cases and overwhelmed hospitals. Mexico’s health department reported 501 deaths from the coronavirus on Tuesday, a new one-day high, and 3,455 more infections. Its daily death toll is approaching that of the U.S., at about 620. Brazil currently leads in daily deaths with more than 800.

Authorities in Chile said their intensive care units were near full capacity, with about 4,000 new cases being confirmed daily. “This is an extraordinarily difficult time,” Health Minister Jaime Mañalich said.

A U.S. travel ban took effect Tuesday for foreigners coming from Brazil, where President Jair Bolsonaro has raged against state and local leaders enforcing stay-at-home measures despite warnings that the outbreak is deepening.

Brazil has about 375,000 coronavirus infections — second only to the 1.6 million cases in the U.S. — and has counted over 23,000 deaths, but many fear Brazil’s true toll is much higher. Worldwide, the virus has infected nearly 5.6 million people and killed over 350,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Europe has recorded about 170,000 deaths, while the U.S. has reported more than 98,900 in a span of less than four months, more than the number of Americans killed in the Vietnam and Korean wars combined.

The true death toll is widely believed to be significantly higher, with experts saying many victims died of the virus without ever being tested for it. President Donald Trump several months ago likened the coronavirus to the flu and dismissed worries that it could lead to so many deaths. The administration’s leading scientists have since warned that as many as 240,000 could die from the virus.

The White House said Tuesday that the president was committed to holding a Fourth of July celebration in the nation’s capital even as local officials warned that the region — one of the hardest hit by the coronavirus — will not be ready to hold a major event.

“Given the number of individuals that would try to attend such an event, logistically such an event would be impossible to put on safely,” lawmakers from the city wrote in a statement. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said Tuesday that the city won’t be issuing any permits for large gatherings in the immediate future. The capital is still under a stay-at-home order, with plans to shift to Phase One of its reopening this weekend.

Reopenings are pushing ahead even as more than a dozen states are still seeing increasing numbers of new cases. News of reopenings was cheered on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 closing 1.2% higher, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining nearly 530 points, or 2.2%.

Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak announced Tuesday night that casinos can reopen on June 4, welcoming tourists to the gambling mecca of Las Vegas. Sisolak shuttered the casinos, which draw millions of tourists and power the state economy, 10 weeks ago to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

In New York, the state with the highest death toll from the virus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said it was time to focus on relaunching New York City’s moribund economy. After ringing open the New York Stock Exchange's trading floor for the first time in two months, he laid out a plan that included accelerating major infrastructure projects and tackling transmission of the virus in the hardest-hit neighborhoods.

Cuomo reported a one-day total of 73 deaths on Tuesday, the lowest figure in months. “In this absurd new reality, that is good news,” he said.

Kurtenbach reported from Bangkok. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.

Sweden steadfast in strategy as virus toll continues rising

May 26, 2020

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden's government defended its response to the COVID-19 global pandemic on Tuesday despite the Scandinavian country now reporting one of the highest mortality rates in the world with 4,125 fatalities, or about 40 deaths per 100,000 people.

“Transmission is slowing down, the treatment of COVID-19 patients in intensive care is decreasing significantly, and the rising death toll curve has been flattened,” Foreign Minister Ann Linde told foreign correspondents at a briefing in Stockholm. “There is no full lockdown of Sweden, but many parts of the Swedish society have shut down.”

More than 76,000 people have been made redundant since the outbreak of the disease and unemployment, which now stands at 7.9%, is expected to climb higher. Sweden took a relatively soft approach to fighting the coronavirus, one that attracted international attention. Large gatherings were banned, but restaurants and schools for younger children have stayed open. The government has urged social distancing, and Swedes have largely complied.

But opponents to the government’s strategy gained an influential voice this week after the country’s former state epidemiologist, Annika Linde, expressed doubt about the strategy adopted by the Swedish health authority. She said that in retrospect she believes an early lockdown could have saved lives.

“Most likely, we would still be a bit worse off (than other Nordic countries), but better off than we are now, and we would possibly have gained time to prepare the strategy to protect the elderly,” she told The Associated Press in a phone interview on Monday.

Sweden’s epidemiologist from 2005 to 2013, Linde headed the country’s response to swine flu and SARS and says she felt provoked by comments from a leading member of the health agency claiming Sweden’s strategy was the best in the world, irrespective of the number of deaths.

“I felt this can’t go on,” she told the AP. “Such a denial may prevent us from acting rationally.” Sweden’s health policy is traditionally based on recommendations issued by medical authorities and followed by the political leadership. But as the death toll mounts, Linde believes elected officials would have been more cautious in risking the lives of citizens.

“In retrospect, I think it would have been worthwhile trying the strategy of Denmark, Norway and Iceland and Finland,” she said. Yet for the Swedish government, it’s still too early to tell what measures have worked and which have failed.

“This is not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” Foreign Minister Ann Linde said. “It’s a good thing that many experts are saying what they think. We have freedom of speech in Sweden,” when asked about Annika Linde’s remarks.

The foreign minister said that the government wouldn't hesitate to change Sweden's policy "if we think that will be necessary.”

Risks complicate reopenings as WHO warns 1st wave not over

May 26, 2020

BANGKOK (AP) — The risks of reigniting coronavirus outbreaks are complicating efforts to fend off further misery for the many millions who have lost jobs, with a top health expert warning that the world is still in the midst of a “first wave” of the pandemic.

“Right now, we're not in the second wave. We're right in the middle of the first wave globally," said Dr. Mike Ryan, a World Health Organization executive director. “We're still very much in a phase where the disease is actually on the way up,” Ryan told reporters, pointing to South America, South Asia and other areas where the number of infections is still on the rise.

Mindful of the risks, Americans settled for small processions and online tributes instead of parades Monday as they observed Memorial Day in the shadow of the pandemic. A U.S. travel ban was due to take effect Tuesday for foreigners coming from Brazil, where the virus is raging through communities with no signs of abating. The ban, originally to take effect Thursday, was moved up. It does not apply to U.S. citizens.

Underscoring the challenge of containing outbreaks of a virus for which there is not yet a vaccine or proven treatment, India reported a record single-day jump in new cases for the seventh straight day. The country reported 6,535 new infections on Tuesday, raising its total to 145,380, including 4,167 deaths.

Most of India's cases are concentrated in the western states of Maharashtra, home to the financial hub Mumbai, and Gujarat. The numbers have also climbed in some of India’s poorest states in the east as migrant workers stranded by lockdowns have returned to their native villages from India’s largest cities.

India has nonetheless been easing restrictions. Domestic flights resumed on Monday after a two-month hiatus, though at only a fraction of normal traffic levels. Australia’s prime minister said that international travel could resume with New Zealand before Australians are allowed to fly interstate if cautious state leaders refuse to reopen their borders.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he spoke with his New Zealand counterpart, Jacinda Ardern, on Tuesday about resuming regular travel between the near-neighbors, which have shared similar success in slowing the coronavirus spread, though not eliminating new cases altogether.

Tests by a U.S. biotechnology company, Novavax, have begun in Australia with hopes of releasing a proven vaccine this year. A Novavax executive said 131 volunteers were getting injections in the first phase of the trial to test the vaccine's safety and effectiveness.

Novovax expects the results of the Australian trial to be known in July. About a dozen experimental vaccines are in early stages of testing or poised to start, and it’s not clear whether any will prove safe and effective. But they use different methods and technologies, increasing the odds that one might succeed.

“We are in parallel making doses, making vaccine in anticipation that we’ll be able to show it’s working and be able to start deploying it by the end of this year,” Novovax's research chief, Dr. Gregory Glenn, told a virtual news conference in Melbourne, Australia, from the company's headquarters in Maryland.

Some restrictions on public gatherings, shorter hours for many businesses and other precautions are still in place in most countries. South Korea on Tuesday began requiring people to wear masks on public transit and while using taxis. The country, once a major epicenter of outbreaks, is tracing dozens of infections linked to nightclubs and other entertainment venues as it prepares for 2.4 million students to return to school on Wednesday.

People in South Korea, like in much of Asia, have generally been wearing masks in public settings anyway, without reports of any major disruptions. Sri Lankan police warned that those failing to respect social distancing guidelines will be arrested from Tuesday as authorities eased a 24-hour curfew in two main districts including the capital, Colombo. A nationwide curfew remains in effect from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Despite hopes that the so-called “first wave" of the pandemic may be waning, Ryan, the WHO official, warned that future “spikes" of outbreaks may mean the first wave is not over. With infections surging in South America, the WHO warned Brazil's leaders against reopening its economy before it can perform enough testing to control the spread of the pandemic.

“Intense" transmission rates mean Brazil should retain some stay-at-home measures despite the economic hardships, Ryan told reporters. “In these kind of circumstances, there may be no alternative,” he said. “You must continue to do everything you can.”

The smaller, more subdued Memorial Day ceremonies in the U.S. honored the nation’s military dead and also remembered those lost to the virus. President Donald Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Virginia, while presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, wearing a black mask, made his first public appearance in two months to lay a wreath at a cemetery near his home.

On the weekend marking the unofficial start of summer, authorities warned people heading to beaches, parks or backyard barbecues to heed social-distancing rules to avoid a resurgence of the disease that has infected 5.4 million people worldwide and killed over 345,000, including nearly 100,000 Americans, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Veterans, along with nursing home residents, have made up a significant portion of those who died in the U.S. outbreak, and Memorial Day commemorations were canceled or toned down across the country.

“This is our freedom. This is our history. It’s what they fought for,” said Frank Groblebe as he and his wife placed lilacs on several graves at Mountview Cemetery in Billings, Montana. They included the graves of his mother and his father, who served in the Philippines as a Navy Seabee during World War II.

“Anything that shows respect for it is all right with me,” Groblebe said, fighting back tears.

UK leader's aide says he won't quit over lockdown road trip

May 25, 2020

LONDON (AP) — British leader Boris Johnson’s powerful chief aide insisted Monday that he wouldn't resign for driving the length of England while the country was under strict lockdown — a trip he made without informing the prime minister first.

The government is facing a tide of anger from politicians and the public over the revelation that Dominic Cummings traveled more than 250 miles (400 kilometers) from London to his parents' home in Durham, northeast England at the end of March.

Cummings says he traveled so that extended family could care for his 4-year-old son if he and his wife, who had suspected coronavirus, both fell ill. He said the three of them stayed in isolation in a building on his father's farm.

His trip came after the government imposed a strict “stay home” order, and Cummings is being accused of flouting the rules he expected the rest of the country to follow. Many Britons have taken to social media and radio phone-ins to recount how the lockdown had prevented them from visiting elderly relatives, comforting dying friends or attending the funerals of loved ones.

In a televised news conference in the garden of 10 Downing St. — all but unheard of for an unelected adviser — Cummings tried to quash the controversy with a detailed but unrepentant account of his movements.

Cummings insisted that “the rules … allowed me to exercise my judgment” and that his need to ensure childcare for his son was an “exceptional situation.” The government's stay-at-home rules, introduced March 23, said people with children should comply ”to the best of your ability." Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Harries later said that “if you have adults who are unable to look after a small child, that is an exceptional circumstance.” She said in that case people without child care or family support should contact their local authority for help — something Cummings didn't do.

“I don’t regret what I did,” Cummings said, though he acknowledged that “reasonable people” might disagree with his actions. Cummings said he didn't tell the prime minister, who had just been diagnosed with COVID-19, about his decision to leave London, because “he was ill himself and he had huge problems to deal with.”

“Arguably this was a mistake," Cummings said. Johnson has stood by Cummings, saying he “followed the instincts of every father and every parent.” “Of course I do regret the confusion and the anger and the pain that people feel,” Johnson said at the government's daily news briefing. “That’s why I wanted people to understand exactly what had happened.”

A self-styled political disrupter who disdains the media and civil service, the 48-year-old Cummings has been essential to Johnson’s rise to power. He was one of the architects of the successful campaign to take Britain out of the European Union, and orchestrated Brexit champion Johnson’s thumping election victory in December.

Five months on from that triumph, Johnson’s government is facing criticism for its response to a pandemic that has hit Britain harder than any other European country. Britain’s official coronavirus death toll stands at 36,914, the second-highest confirmed total in the world after the United States.

The coronavirus laid low a swath of senior U.K. officials, including Cummings, Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Johnson himself, who spent several days in intensive care at a London hospital in April.

The U.K. is gradually easing its lockdown, initially by allowing more outdoor recreation. The government plans to reopen schools starting on June 1, and Johnson said Monday that the vast majority of shops in England will be able to open two weeks later, as long as they can become “COVID-19 secure.”

Some scientists said Cummings' behavior would make it harder to enforce continued social distancing. Stephen Reicher, a social psychologist who sits on a group advising the government, said “more people are going to die” because the episode would undermine adherence to the lockdown rules.

The opposition Labor Party said the government's message was that there was "one rule for Boris Johnson’s closest adviser, another for everybody else.” Ominously for Johnson, some Conservative lawmakers also expressed unease. Member of Parliament Paul Maynard said the aide’s actions were “a classic case of ‘do as I say, not as I do,’"

The conservative Daily Mail newspaper, usually supportive of Johnson, blared “What planet are they on?” in a headline about Cummings and the prime minister." Cummings, who usually exerts power from the sidelines, looked uncomfortable but didn't admit fault during a live media grilling that lasted more than an hour.

He said that people felt “understandable anger,” but insisted much of it was “based on reports in the media that haven't been true.” However, he confirmed most of the details in media reports of his travels, including the journey to Durham and an April 12 drive to a scenic town half an hour away — taken, Cummings said, to check whether his eyesight, which had been affected by illness, had recovered enough for him to drive.

“I don’t think there is one rule for me and one rule for other people,” he said, insisting he had done what he thought was right at the time. He said he hadn't considered resigning. Asked whether Johnson should consider sacking him, Cummings said: “That’s not for me to decide. It’s up to him to decide.”

World's reaction to US weaves solidarity, calls to change

June 01, 2020

BANGKOK (AP) — Several thousand people marched in New Zealand's largest city on Monday to protest the killing of George Floyd in the U.S. as well as to stand up against police violence and racism in their own country.

Many people around the world have watched with growing unease at the civil unrest in the U.S. after the latest in a series of police killings of black men and women. Floyd died on May 25 in Minneapolis after a white police officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck until he stopped breathing. The officer was fired and charged with murder.

The protesters in Auckland marched to the U.S. Consulate, where they kneeled. They held banners with slogans like “I can’t breathe” and “The real virus is racism.” Hundreds more joined the peaceful protests and vigils elsewhere in New Zealand, where Monday was a public holiday.

At a gathering in central London on Sunday, thousands offered support for American demonstrators, chanting "No justice! No peace!" and waving placards with the words “How many more?” In other places, too, demonstrators wove solidarity with the U.S. protesters with messages aimed at local authorities.

In Brazil, hundreds of people protested crimes committed by the police against black people in Rio de Janeiro’s working-class neighborhoods, known as favelas. Police used tear gas to disperse them, with some demonstrators saying “I can’t breathe,” repeating Floyd's own words.

In Canada, an anti-racism protest degenerated into clashes between Montreal police and some demonstrators. Police declared the gathering illegal after they say projectiles were thrown at officers who responded with pepper spray and tear gas. Some windows were smashed and some fires were set.

In authoritarian nations, the unrest became a chance to undermine U.S. criticism of their own situations. Iranian state television repeatedly aired images of the U.S. unrest. Russia said the United States had systemic human rights problems. And state-controlled media in China saw the protests through the prism of American views on Hong Kong's anti-government demonstrations.

North Korea’s official Rodong Sinmun newspaper on Monday reported about the demonstrations, saying that protesters “harshly condemned” a white policeman’s “lawless and brutal murder” of a black citizen. Three large photos from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Reuters news agency and Agence France-Presse showed protest scenes from recent days in the city where Floyd was killed.

The article said hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the White House chanting “No justice, no peace,” and that demonstrations were occurring in other cities and were expected to grow. It did not make any direct comments about the Trump administration.

World alarmed by violence in US; thousands march in London

June 01, 2020

LONDON (AP) — Nations around the world have watched in horror at the civil unrest in the United States following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after a white police officer pressed his knee on his neck until he stopped breathing.

Racism-tinged events no longer startle even America’s closest allies, though many have watched coverage of the often-violent protests with growing unease. Burning cars and riot police in the U.S. featured on newspaper front pages around the globe Sunday — bumping news of the COVID-19 pandemic to second-tier status in some places.

Floyd's death on May 25 in Minneapolis was the latest in a series of deaths of black men and women at the hands of police in the U.S. Thousands gathered in central London on Sunday to offer support for American demonstrators. Chanting "No justice! No peace!" and waving placards with the words “How many more?” at Trafalgar Square, the protesters ignored U.K. government rules banning crowds because of the pandemic. Police didn't stop them.

Demonstrators then marched to the U.S. Embassy, where a long line of officers surrounded the building. Several hundred milled around in the street and waved placards. Protesters in Denmark also converged on the U.S. Embassy on Sunday. Participants carried placards with messages such as “Stop Killing Black People.”

The U.S. Embassy in Berlin was the scene of protests on Saturday under the motto: “Justice for George Floyd.” Several hundred more people took to the streets Sunday in the capital’s Kreuzberg area, carrying signs with slogans like “Silence is Violence,” “Hold Cops Accountable,” and “Who Do You Call When Police Murder?” No incidents were reported.

Germany’s top-selling Bild newspaper on Sunday carried the sensational headline “This killer-cop set America ablaze” with an arrow pointing to a photo of now-fired police officer Derek Chauvin, who has been charged with third-degree murder in Floyd’s death, with his knee on Floyd’s neck. The newspaper’s story reported “scenes like out of a civil war."

In Italy, the Corriere della Sera newspaper's senior U.S. correspondent Massimo Gaggi wrote that the reaction to Floyd’s killing was “different” than previous cases of black Americans killed by police and the ensuring violence.

“There are exasperated black movements that no longer preach nonviolent resistance,” Gaggi wrote, noting the Minnesota governor’s warning that “anarchist and white supremacy groups are trying to fuel the chaos.''

In countries with authoritarian governments, state-controlled media have been highlighting the chaos and violence of the U.S. demonstrations, in part to undermine American officials’ criticism of their own nations.

In China, the protests are being viewed through the prism of U.S. government criticism of China's crackdown on anti-government protests in Hong Kong. Hu Xijin, the editor of the state-owned Global Times newspaper, tweeted that U.S. officials can now see protests out their own windows: “I want to ask Speaker Pelosi and Secretary Pompeo: Should Beijing support protests in the U.S., like you glorified rioters in Hong Kong?”

Hua Chunying, a Chinese Foreign ministry spokeswoman, pointed out America's racial unrest by tweeting “I can't breathe,” which Floyd said before his death. In Iran, which has violently put down nationwide demonstrations by killing hundreds, arresting thousands and disrupting internet access to the outside world, state television has repeatedly aired images of the U.S. unrest. One TV anchor discussed “a horrible scene from New York, where police attacked protesters.” Another state TV message accused U.S. police agencies in Washington of “setting fire to cars and attacking protesters,” without offering any evidence.

Russia accused the United States of “systemic problems in the human rights sphere.'' It denounced Floyd's death as the latest in a series of police violence cases against African Americans. “This incident is far from the first in a series of lawless conduct and unjustified violence from U.S. law enforcement,’’ the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “American police commit such high-profile crimes all too often.’’

There also have been expressions of solidarity with the demonstrators. In Brazil, hundreds of people gathered in front of the Rio de Janeiro state government palace to protest crimes committed by the police against black people in Rio’s working-class neighborhoods, known as favelas.

The protest, called “Black lives matter,” was interrupted when police used tear gas to disperse people. “I can’t breathe”, said some of the demonstrators, alluding to the George Floyd´s death. Protesters called for an end to police operations inside favelas.

In Canada, an anti-racism protest degenerated into clashes between Montreal police and some demonstrators. About three hours after a march that snaked its way through downtown Montreal had ended, police declared the gathering illegal after they say projectiles were thrown at officers who responded with pepper spray and tear gas. Some windows were smashed and some fires were set.

Over the weekend, Lebanese anti-government protesters flooded social media with tweets sympathetic to U.S. protesters, using the hashtag #Americarevolts. That's a play on the slogan for Lebanon’s protest movement — Lebanon revolts — which erupted on Oct. 17 last year. Within 24 hours, the hashtag #Americanrevolts became the No. 1 trending tag in Lebanon.

In another expression of solidarity with American protesters, about 150 people marched through central Jerusalem on Saturday to protest the shooting death by Israeli police of an unarmed, autistic Palestinian man earlier in the day. Israeli police mistakenly suspected that the man, Iyad Halak, was carrying a weapon. When he failed to obey orders to stop, officers opened fire.

Associated Press Writers David Rising in Berlin, Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Frances D'Emilio in Rome, Zeina Karam in Beirut, Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem, Ken Moritsugu in Beijing, Jari Tanner in Helsinki, Finland, and Jim Heintz in Moscow, contributed to this report.

Italy's seas speak: No tourists or boats mean cleaner water

May 30, 2020

FIUMICINO, Italy (AP) — Pollution from human and agriculture waste spilling into the seas off Rome has decreased 30% during Italy's coronavirus lockdown, preliminary results from a nationwide survey of seawater quality indicate.

Authorities stressed it was too soon to give the lockdown sole credit for the change, saying that shifting sea currents and limited rainfall in April and May also could have been responsible for reduced runoff of livestock and fertilizer waste.

But Marco Lupo, director general of the Lazio region’s environmental agency, hypothesized that the evaporation of tourism starting in March could have reduced the amount of sewage produced by the 30 million tourists who normally visit Rome each year.

In addition, the lockdown meant Italians couldn’t flock to their seaside vacation homes as they normally would in spring, a phenomenon that typically overwhelms local water treatment plants and results in increased pollutants spewing into the seas, Lupo said.

“This year, coastal towns have been much less populated, decreasing the (human-caused pollution) burden” on the water, he told The Associated Press. There’s no indication seas will stay cleaner, since the lockdown is ending and any pollution reduction may be temporary.

But scientists around the world have documented some remarkable ecological changes as a result of travel ceasing, industrial production in many countries grinding to a halt and people staying home. Air pollution is down in some of the world’s smoggiest cities, while wildlife such as coyotes and boars have been seen in urban areas.

Off Italy's coasts, which are popular and occasionally polluted, there are visible effects of the lockdown. With the usually busy Gulf of Naples cleared of pleasure boats, cargo and cruise ships, dolphins usually only seen far out in the Mediterranean flock close to shore. Jellyfish have been spotted in the empty canals of Venice.

During the lockdown, fishermen are pulling in bigger hauls than usual off Rome’s main industrial port at Civitavecchia. In April, for example, fishermen pulled in 60,000 kilograms (132,277 pounds) of fish compared with 52,000 kilograms (114,640 pounds) during the same month last year.

Roberto Arciprete, a marine biologist with Civitavecchia’s local fishing cooperative, hypothesized that the sharp reduction in maritime traffic had resulted in more fish swimming closer to shore. Environment Minister Sergio Costa noted that the coronavirus emergency, while tragic given the loss of life, offered an unprecedented opportunity to create a “photograph” of Italy's seas. Costa on April 15 tasked the Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies to work with regional environmental authorities to take water samples and monitor and assess changes in the seas off Italy’s 8,000 kilometers (4,971 miles) of coastline.

The results will provide data and a baseline from which the country can reboot industrial production sustainably and create “a new normal that we know is absolutely necessary,” he said. “This can give us a point of departure, actually a point of re-departure,” he said in a statement. “This photograph will become the point of reference for the future controls of the seas, lakes and rivers, so that nature and our country can be better cared for.”

Coast Guard Adm. Vincenzo Leone, who is responsible for the Lazio region, said it was appropriate to seize the moment to determine if an elimination of tourism and boating had a measurable effect on water quality. He described the sampling underway as a “blood test of the sea.”

“There is only one sea and we must protect it,” he said. “So when the sea talks to us, we have to listen to it.”

Nicole Winfield contributed from Rome.