The pandemic and the global economy
Jayati Ghosh | mronline.org | 2020-04-22
Developing countries face collapsing international trade, falling remittances, sharp reversals of capital flows, and currency depreciation. Only bold policies–debt relief, international financing, planning, and more–will avert further catastrophe.
mronline.org/2020/04/22/the-pandemic-and…

We Won’t Stop COVID-19 with “Chickenpox Parties”
Charles Pierson | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
Thumbing their noses at both government directives and the coronavirus, right-wing protestors have been massing at state capitols in Michigan, Minnesota, Virginia, and Texas to demand the lifting of stay-at-home orders issued by Democratic governors. President Donald Trump has responded in a way that looks a whole lot like a call to insurrection. On April 17, Trump tweeted “LIBERATE MICHIGAN,” “LIBERATE MINNESOTA,” and ‘LIBERATE VIRGINIA,” apparently mistaking those states for Paris in 1944.
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/we-wont-stop…

United States: An ‘all hands on deck’ moment–Sixty six old new leftists urge support for Joe Biden
Paul Le Blanc | mronline.org | 2020-04-22
SDS, along with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), had been in the vanguard of the new left in the 1960s, and some of these oldsters now want to challenge a position taken by Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), currently the foremost organization on the left today. They tell us “this is an all hands …
mronline.org/2020/04/22/united-states-an…

Who is Behind “Fake News”? Mainstream Media Use Fake Videos and Images
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
The mainstream corporate media is desperate. They want to suppress independent and alternative online media, which they categorize as “fake news”. Readers on social media are warned not to go onto certain sites. Our analysis confirms that the mainstream media are routinely involved in distorting the facts and turning realities upside down.
globalresearch.ca/who-is-behind-fake-new…

Don’t Worry, Everything Will Get Back to “Normal”
Ted Rall | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
When will things get back to normal? Everyone is asking. The economic lockdown prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a mass unemployment shock, forced countless businesses into bankruptcy and is driving many Americans crazy. But this shall pass. The good old days will be back. The coronavirus worried city officials. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers were sleeping…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/dont-worry-e…

US Role in Destabilizing Yemen and Somalia Could Spark “Famine of Biblical Proportions”
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2020-04-22
The World Food Program is warning that Yemen and countries in the Horn of Africa

Will America’s Corruption End on a Ventilator or in a Mushroom Cloud?
MBNJSD | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-04-22
Little by little, Americans are understanding just how badly our government has let us down by its belated and disastrous response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and how thousands more people are dying as a result. But there are two other crises we face that our government is totally unprepared for and incapable of dealing with: …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/04/will-americas…

Big Insurance Is Propping Up Big Oil. Activists Say It’s Time to Pull the Plug
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-04-22
This story is published as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. | In the western world, paying for insurance each month is as ubiquitous a routine as paying for the internet. Once insurance companies collect monthly premium payments, the industry turns around and invests the pool of money in profitable ventures

William Shakespeare and the New World Order: “Hell is Empty and all the Devils are Here”
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
William Shakespeare’s birthday: he taught us never to despair in our resolve to confront the Lie. “to unmask falsehood and bring truth to light”. War criminals in high office are celebrated as messengers of peace: “And thus I clothe my naked villany. And seem a saint, when most I play the devil.” (Shakespeare, the words of King Richard III)…
globalresearch.ca/william-shakespeare-an…

China: Three Weeks in Quarantine for Those Arriving in Beijing
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-22
People arriving in Beijing from abroad will have to complete an additional week of domestic quarantine after the two currently required. This implies that the number of weeks of mandatory confinement is raised to three. | RELATED: | Palestine Receives Medical Aid from China to Fight COVID-19 | Foreigners are currently banned from entering China, a national-level decision that exempts diplomats and some people related to trade or medical research. | Until now, regulations required…
telesurenglish.net/news/China-Three-Week…

“Mask Diplomacy” Might Not be Enough to Save Turkey from Financial Crisis
Paul Antonopoulos | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
Turkey seems to be getting inspiration from China by engaging in “mask diplomacy” and is helping many coronavirus affected countries. Even though Turkey is being devastated by the pandemic with over 100,000 cases and 2,200 succumbing to the infection, it …
globalresearch.ca/mask-diplomacy-not-eno…

Cancellation Wave Continues, China Leasing Firm Scraps Boeing 737 MAX Order
Zero Hedge | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
As thousands of Boeing employees head back to work in the Puget Sound region over the last week, the Washington-based aircraft manufacturer has noticed a string of recent cancellations of the grounded 737 MAX jet. | Last Tuesday (April 14), Boeing …
globalresearch.ca/china-leasing-firm-scr…

BJP capitalizes on Coronavirus fears to take India’s fascist creep to the next level
Alan MacLeod | mronline.org | 2020-04-22
India is accelerating down the track of religious strife, and the government itself is driving the vehicle.
mronline.org/2020/04/22/bjp-capitalizes-…

Russia is About to Face its Biggest Test Yet in Syria
Robert Fisk | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
An American reader tired of corona journalism sent me a plea this week: “There must be plenty of cruelty being unleashed by the gangsters-in-chief across the ‘Mideast’ that simply isn’t making it into the headlines,” she wrote. “Trump et al are either ignoring it or silently condoning it.” I doubt if Donald Trump is ignoring…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/russia-is-ab…

Erdogan opposes lockdown as Turkey’s COVID-19 pandemic overtakes China
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Overtaking China and Iran in terms of the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases, at 90,000, Turkey has emerged as the country in Asia with the most cases.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/turk…

The Origin of Plagues: From Mao to Trump
Evaggelos Vallianatos | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
On July 1, 1958, the ruler of China, Mao Tse-tung, said farewell to the god of plagues. Mao’s celebration was short lived. The god of plagues has been ravaging China and the rest of the world to this day of the existential corona pandemic in 2020.
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/the-origin-o…

Trump announces plan to halt all immigration to US
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Trump’s “pause” on immigration is a desperate attempt by the crisis-riddled administration to distract from the criminality of the ruling class’s own response to the coronavirus pandemic.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/pers…

Nuclear war still on the cards, Moscow warns, as Covid-19 only worsens battle for global dominance
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Covid-19 hasn’t united the world. On the contrary, it has gravely increased the risk of largescale conflicts, with major players trying to use the crisis to strengthen their hands, Russia’s deputy foreign minister has said. | The struggle for international dominance was sharply intensifying even before the pandemic began, Sergey Ryabkov believes, but “unfortunately, the coronavirus couldn’t defuse this process, on the contrary, it only amplified and accelerated it.” | Ryabkov delivered a report on the future of Russian foreign policy at TASS news agency’s HQ in Moscow. | The divisions that may result in major…
rt.com/news/486575-russia-coronavirus-gl…

Universal basic income plan for post-lockdown UK endorsed by over 100 opposition MPs
rt.com | 2020-04-22
A group of over 100 MPs and Peers have called on the UK government to prepare some form of recovery Universal Basic Income (UBI) to protect citizens from the impending financial crisis resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. | “As the scale and duration of the crisis becomes clear, it is essential that we take steps now to ensure that when we eventually emerge from lockdown, we do so with a fairer and more resilient society and economy,” the cross-party Basic Income Conversation group wrote in a blog post and letter publis…
rt.com/uk/486533-universal-basic-income-…

India suspends Covid-19 antibody tests as accuracy concerns grow
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The Indian government has ordered a pause in coronavirus-antibody testing owing to accuracy concerns, health officials said on Wednesday. As India’s tally of cases nears 20,000, this will complicate the fight against the epidemic. | India trails many countries in conducting the standard swab tests to determine the presence of Covid-19 because of limited testing equipment and protective gear for medical workers. | Earlier this month, health authorities approved blood tests for coronavirus antibodies as a faster way to bolster the screening effort, and ordered half a billion testing kits from China. However, Dr…
rt.com/newsline/486534-india-suspends-an…

Not now, Greta: Child climate activist calls on world to fight climate change AND coronavirus at the same time
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg has reemerged once again to lecture the world’s governments about how to do their jobs, arguing that they must continue to fight climate change while facing down a global pandemic. | Thunberg told an Earth Day livestream event on Wednesday that she wants the world to fight the twin crises of climate change and the global coronavirus pandemic simultaneously. | “Today is Earth Day and that reminds us that climate and the environmental emergency is still ongoing and we need to tackle both the corona pandemic … at the same time as we tackle [the] climate and environmental eme…
rt.com/news/486551-greta-fight-climate-c…

‘We did not get a cent’: Palestinian diplomat says US ‘lying’ about promised $5mn aid package to hospitals facing Covid-19
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The Palestinian envoy to France said Washington lied about sending millions in aid to beleaguered hospitals in Gaza and the West Bank, insisting the funds were earmarked for favored NGOs unlikely to spend a dime on healthcare. | In a tweet last week, Washington’s ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, claimed the US would provide $5 million to “Palestinian hospitals and households to meet immediate, life-saving needs in combating Covid-19,” while congratulating the US for being the “world’s top humanitarian donor.” | I’m very pleased the USA is providing $5M for Palestinian hospitals and households to meet imme…
rt.com/news/486516-us-lied-palestine-aid…

Free julian assange Nation wide Webinar event Panel
ORION | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Xh2EsZbrTtOq…

Demonstrators Demand Santa Cruz Provide Hotel Vouchers for the Homeless
Alex Darocy | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
Community members in Santa Cruz organized a “physical distancing” protest today to demand the City and County of Santa Cruz provide hotel vouchers for the homeless during the COVID-19 Pandemic. The demonstration was organized following California Governor Gavin Newsom’s statements made during a press conference on April 18 that cities and municipalities that are blocking the State’s effort to provide hotels for the homeless will be “judged” by history.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/20/1883252…

Chileans Who Took to Streets Against Inequality & Climate Crisis Say Virus Lockdowns Won’t Stop Them
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-22
Months ago, the streets of Santiago and other Chilean cities were alive with a vibrant mass protest movement that drew hundreds of thousands and even led the U.N. climate summit to be relocated to Madrid, Spain, last December. Now the public spaces of Santiago are largely empty as citizens shelter in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. But the protest movement against austerity and right-wing President Sebastián Piñera lives on as activists find new ways to organize online. We go to Santiago, Chile, to speak with Angela Valenzuela, a 350.org organizer who has been active both in the country’s uprising and in…
www.democracynow.org/2020/4/22/angela_va…

Greta Thunberg: Climate Activists Have Not Lost Hope Amid Pandemic. We’re Changing How We Organize
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-22
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg spoke in an Earth Day live stream hosted by the Nobel Prize Museum about how the Fridays for Future school strikes movement she launched is responding to the coronavirus pandemic. “Within the Fridays for Future movement, there’s still this sort of big sense of resistance, and people are thinking, ‘We will get out of this. And when we do, we will continue, and we will do everything we can that is possible in that situation to continue to push even harder,'” says Thunberg. “I feel like many people have not lost their sense of hope. We have just changed the way we do things. W…
www.democracynow.org/2020/4/22/greta_thu…

“Frightening Moment”: On Earth Day, Kumi Naidoo on Africa’s Twin Pandemics of Coronavirus & Hunger
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-22
Some 265 million people are expected to face acute hunger as the coronavirus crisis could trigger a second pandemic of hunger. The crisis is projected to disproportionately affect Africa, where there is already widespread hunger. This comes as the World Health Organization estimates the number of COVID-19 cases in Africa could rise to 10 million in the next three to six months. Ten African countries don’t have a single ventilator. “This is an extremely terrifying and frightening moment for the people of Africa. … We were already facing a major food crisis

Bill McKibben on Earth Day at 50: We Must Stop Subsidizing Fossil Fuel Industry Wrecking the Planet
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-22
Today marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, when more than 20 million Americans joined in actions to protect the environment

Israel: Gantz agrees to national emergency government with Netanyahu
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The new government’s real purpose is to protect the wealth of Israel’s corporate and financial elite and to suppress social unrest in Israel and Palestine.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/isra…

Thousands view online meeting of UK SEP outlining a socialist perspective on the pandemic
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Around 500 viewers took part in the event with participants from Britain joined by others from Australia, Sri Lanka, Germany, France, Canada and the US–underscoring the international interest in the meeting.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/onuk…

Oil price plunge continues
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Trump has indicated government bailout measures for the industry may be forthcoming after his failed attempt to halt the price slide by having Russia and Saudi Arabia cut production.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/oilp…

France and COVID-19: Incompetence and Conceit
Patrick Howlett-Martin | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
On December 31, 2019, the Chinese government informed the World Health Organization of an epidemic of animal origin in Wuhan, reporting similarities to SARS-CoV (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, originally appearing in 2002 in the province of Guangdong) and to MERS-CoV (Middle East Repiratory Syndrome, originally appearing in Saudi Arabia in 2012). On January 12, Chinese scientists shared the completely sequenced genome of this new coronavirus with the entire international scientific community.
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/france-and-c…

Brazil implements basic income policy following massive civil society campaign
Pedro Telles | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
Tens of millions of Brazilians have begun receiving basic income payments aimed at addressing the economic impact of Covid-19, following Congress’ approval of a bill prompted by a country-wide grassroots campaign that began just three weeks ago…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/brazil-implements-…

Brazil’s Bolsonaro escalates coup threats as ruling class pushes “back-to-work” orders
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
As COVID-19 spread uncontrolled across the country, Bolsonaro delivered a fascist rant in front of hundreds of supporters gathered at Brazil’s Army headquarters.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/bols…

Fighting COVID (and Repression) in Kashmir
Bilal Hussain | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
As the coronavirus pandemic spreads to India, Indian-administered Kashmir

Presidents of Russia, Iran and Turkey Discuss COVID-19 Crisis
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-22
Presidents Vladimir Putin, Russia; Hasan Rohani, Iran; and Racep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey, discussed a partnership to tackle COVID-19 in these countries on Tuesday during a telephone meeting. | RELATED: | ‘Russia to Halt Covid-19 in 3 Months at Most’, President Putin | The consolidation of efforts in the international community is essential to contain the spread of the virus, the leaders agreed. | During the telephone meeting, they agreed to intensify the in…
telesurenglish.net/news/presidents-of-ru…

In Honor of Earth Day
Frank Joyce | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
Don’t have a FOMO panic attack if you missed the new Holiday this past Sunday. There were only a few of us who celebrated it. That’s because only a few of us knew about it. Next year on April 18, 2021 there will be more. What’s the Holiday? Going forward, the Sunday before Earth Day,…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/in-honor-of-…

New York City mayor declares “wartime” budget
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Cuts to New York City’s municipal budget due to the COVID-19 pandemic will have a devastating economic impact on the city’s working class.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/nycb…

Strange Attractors: On Being Addicted to Trump and His Press Conferences
Rebecca Gordon | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
My partner and I have been fighting about politics since we met in 1965. I was 13. She was 18 and my summer camp counselor. (It was another 14 years before we became a couple.) We spent that first summer arguing about the Vietnam War. I was convinced that the U.S. never should have gotten…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/strange-attr…

Nova Scotia gunman kills 22 in Canada’s deadliest mass shooting
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Marked by rampant social inequality and economic insecurity and led by a ruling elite mired in aggression and war, Canadian capitalism regularly engenders outbursts of homicidal violence.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/nova…

The Impacts of Roundup (Glyphosate): Immune Suppression, Total Corporate Control over Agriculture, Destruction of the Family Farm
Mischa Popoff | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
The war is on. A crucial weapon in the attack is Roundup (glyphosate), a herbicide that’s being used for something for which it was never intended[1]: the forced ripening of crops, called desiccation, all but guaranteeing it …
globalresearch.ca/covid-19-roundup-immun…

Congress: Put Workers and Communities First
Basav Sen | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
The IPS Climate Policy Program and 339 other organizations are calling on Congress to support ordinary people through this crisis, not the fossil fuel industry…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/congress-put-worke…

Environmental and Labor Groups Team Up to Demand COVID-19 Relief
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-04-22
This story is published as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. | As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to devastate the U.S. economy, national environmental organizations are stepping up to support labor unions and frontline workers across the country in their push for personal protective equipment, sick and hazard pay, safe working conditions, and other forms of relief as the crisis intensifies. | The Labor Network for Sustainability…
truthout.org/articles/environmental-and-…

Kazakhstan: Hospital workers demand resignation of government official over spread of COVID-19
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Hospital workers demanded that the city’s chief public health officer, who accused medical workers of being responsible for the spread of the virus, be removed from office.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/kaza…

Mexican Workers Strike For Paid Home Leave
Kent Paterson | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
The COVID-19 coronavirus-related work stoppages mark the third big wildcat strike wave in the northern Mexican maquiladora industry during the last four-and-a half years…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/mexican-workers-st…

Britain continues to cascade down press freedom index
graham | truepublica.org.uk | 2020-04-22
By TruePublica: The 2020 World Press Freedom Index, compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), shows that the coming decade will be decisive for the future of journalism, with the Covid-19 pandemic highlighting and amplifying the many crises that threaten the right to freely reported, independent, diverse and reliable information. This 2020 edition of the Index, which …
truepublica.org.uk/united-kingdom/britain-continues-to-cascade-down-press-freedom-index/

Cuba: In Test Phase Vaccine That Activates Innate Immune System
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-22
The Cuban vaccine CIGB 2020 Immunopotentiator has entered the testing phase on the island to prove its effectiveness in the treatment of people infected with COVID-19. | RELATED: | Cuba to Send Doctors to Four Caribbean Countries and Argentina | According to Cuba’s Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), the vaccine strengthens people’s innate immunity. | Its application is nasal and sublingual. So far, it has proven effective in people confirmed with the dise…
telesurenglish.net/news/cuba-in-test-pha…

3 potential positive outcomes from the coronavirus crisis
Andrew Butler | thecanary.co | 2020-04-22
As the world struggles to combat and contain the coronavirus (Covid-19), here are three emerging solutions that we should all be working to implement … | Read more | By Andrew Butler…
thecanary.co/video/2020/04/22/3-potentia…

As COVID-19 deaths pass 17,000, UK corporations scramble for bailout funds
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
In what it described as a “conservative estimate”, the Financial Times concluded that its analysis of official data reveals “The coronavirus pandemic has already caused as many as 41,000 deaths in the UK”.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/furl…

Imperial to begin trials of Oxford COVID-19 vaccine as London centre
imperial.ac.uk | 2020-04-22
Imperial College London has joined an Oxford-led clinical trial as a key site to begin testing a vaccine against COVID-19.
imperial.ac.uk/news/197023/imperial-begin-trials-oxford-covid-19-vaccine

New York During COVID-19
Joseph Grosso | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
Living in New York City the past month has become a grim game of simply hoping that rock bottom has at least been hit…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/new-york-during-co…

Covid-19 Sweeping Through Farmworker and Meatpacker Ranks
Danica Jorden | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
“We work shoulder to shoulder. We’re very close to each other…. I’ve had a fever and flu symptoms, but I take Tylenol and keep working.”
zcomm.org/znetarticle/covid-19-sweeping-…

Death toll rises at veterans hospital in Massachusetts
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Roughly 1-in-4 COVID-19 fatalities in the entire Veterans Affairs care system have taken place at a single facility in Massachusetts.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/mass…

Trump’s Inaction on the COVID-19 Crisis Seems More Deliberate Each Day
William rivers Pitt | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
Millions of Americans are making actual, often painful sacrifices every day to help bring the COVID-19 pandemic to heel, and Trump doesn’t seem to give a single damn…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/trumps-inaction-on…

Imperial COVID-19 vaccine team secures £22.5 million support
imperial.ac.uk | 2020-04-22
The UK government will provide £22.5 million to fast-track Imperial’s development of a coronavirus vaccine.
imperial.ac.uk/news/197017/imperial-covid-19-vaccine-team-secures-225

Mexican Workers Strike For Paid Home Leave
Kent Paterson | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
Wildcat strikes involving hundreds if not thousands of workers erupted in the mainly foreign owned factories (maquiladoras) of northern Mexico in recent days. Alarmed by sick co-workers, including some of whom had reportedly succumbed to the health effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus, workers demanded that, in accordance with a federal decree ordering the closure of…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/mexican-work…

FROM THE FIELD: Migrants use digital ‘fab labs’ to address Djibouti health protection shortages
news.un.org | 2020-04-22
With Djibouti’s health system under enormous strain from the COVID-19 pandemic, young migrants in the country are using 3D-printers to make face shields, and ease the shortfall inside medical facilities.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/04/1…

Trump Dismisses New Study on Danger and Ineffectiveness of Hydroxychloroquine
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-04-22
A drug that President Donald Trump frequently promoted for use in the treatment for COVID-19 (at one point calling it a “game-changer”) is getting renewed scrutiny after a study found that there was “no evidence” to suggest its application did any good for patients. | The study, in fact, found that those who were treated with hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug that some have said showed p…
truthout.org/articles/trump-dismisses-ne…

Bolivia: Social Leaders Denounce Gov’t for Rights Violations
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-22
Bolivian social organizations announced Tuesday a joint statement against the de facto regime due to human rights violations during COVID-19 outbreak management in the Andean nation. | RELATED: | Evo Morales: Police Put Cochabamba Population’s Health at Risk | “We have reached the point where they politized the quarantine and the health emergency. The government is using justice because now everything is intimidation, trials, and threats,” affirmed Andronico Rodriguez, vice-presi…
telesurenglish.net/news/bolivia-social-l…

Podcast: COVID-19 vaccine development, patient data and isolation diaries
imperial.ac.uk | 2020-04-22
In this edition: We hear from researchers working on a COVID-19 vaccine and with patient samples, and how students are coping in isolation.
imperial.ac.uk/news/197016/podcast-covid-19-vaccine-development-patient-data

COVID-19 pandemic, an ‘unprecedented wake-up call’ for all inhabitants of Mother Earth
news.un.org | 2020-04-22
In his message for International Mother Earth Day this Wednesday, UN‚ÄØSecretary-General‚ÄØAntónio‚ÄØGuterres acknowledged that all eyes are on the COVID-19 pandemic, which he flagged as “an unprecedented wake-up call”
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/04/1…

The politics of Covid-19
Benjamin Morgan | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
When it comes to support for homeless people, the government’s response to Covid-19 has been heavy on rhetoric but thin on substance. Local authorities alone cannot sustain the poorest through this crisis…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/the-politics-of-co…

Real jobless rate could reach 30 percent in Australia
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Low-paid workers are twice as likely to be thrown out of work as high-income people in the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Grattan Institute.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/jobs…

UK coronavirus policy could put 7.3 million over-60s at increased risk
imperial.ac.uk | 2020-04-22
The UK’s policy for shielding older adults from COVID-19 overlooks 7.3 million adults aged 60-69, placing them at increased risk and death.
imperial.ac.uk/news/197013/uk-coronavirus-policy-could-73-million

Human Lab Rats: The US Government’s Secret History of Grisly Medical Experiments
John Whitehead | mintpressnews.com | 2020-04-22
Grisly experiments, barbaric behavior and inhumane conditions have become synonymous with the US government, which has meted out untold horrors against humans and animals alike.
mintpressnews.com/human-lab-rats-us-gove…

Baltimore, Maryland approves measure allowing for police aerial surveillance
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The program would allow the city government to continuously track the movements of the population utilizing technology developed for the US occupation of Iraq.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/surv…

Our Voice: Victim-hood, money and lives underline the “them” versus “us” divide
Eds. | mronline.org | 2020-04-22
Some of the same forces that brought about the single largest act of domestic terrorism in our county–killing 168 people, including dozens of children, and injuring hundreds more–are percolating below the surface today. In fact, last year was the second highest year for domestic terrorism, with attacks that killed 31 people.
mronline.org/2020/04/22/our-voice-victim…

US safety agencies bow to corporations as workers file record number of complaints
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has reportedly received 3,000 complaints related to the pandemic, with state agencies receiving many times…
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/osha…

Does the Theoretical Arrow Fired by Jane Goodall End at the Feet of Jair Bolsonaro?
Peter Harrison | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
We oh-so civilized humans seem to think we know everything

The Deadly Denial Virus
Daryan Rezazad | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
The Corona virus crisis has bought out into the open how we live within a matrix of interdependence that we normally take for granted and that is largely invisible to us. International supply chains have been disrupted and entire national economies have sunk into recession. Basic medical equipment that plays a vital part in keeping…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/the-deadly-d…

Donald Trump’s Governor Problem
Binoy Kampmark | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
Things are getting dizzy in the White House on what, exactly, is being done to “open the economy”. Cranky advocates for the financial argument over the restrictions of public health have been attempting to claw back some ground. As Jonathan Chait puts it,…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/donald-trump…

Earth Day 2020: a Vision for the Next 50 Years
John Horning | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
Fifty years ago this week, a group of visionaries created an event to honor, celebrate and protect the earth. The original founders of Earth Day were inspired by an understanding that Earth and its life support systems were increasingly vulnerable. They also understood a profound and simple truth–if the Earth suffers, then humanity suffers too.
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/earth-day-20…

Orwellian Lockstep and a Loaded Syringe
Colin Todhunter | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
Some years ago, the then vice-president of Monsanto Robert T Fraley asked, “Why do people doubt science”. He posed the question partly because he had difficulty in believing that some people had valid concerns about the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in agriculture. Critics were questioning the science behind GM technology and the impacts…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/orwellian-lo…

The Washington Post’s Debt Cult
Dean Baker | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
The Washington Post is always telling us that debt, especially government debt is bad, very bad. It’s not quite sure why or how, but debt is definitely bad. We got the latest confused entry from…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/the-washingt…

Ground-Breaking Study Shows Why Public Lands are Overgrazed: Case in Point, the High Uintas Wilderness
Jason Christensen | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
In the early 1970s Yellowstone to Uintas founder and staff ecologist, Dr. John Carter began backpacking in the Uinta Wilderness in northeastern Utah where one of his friends got giardia from drinking untreated water in a sheep grazing area. This caused him concern as he was also leading trips for youth from all over the…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/ground-break…

Hey, You Guys at the Fed, Fix the Plumbing!
Sam Pizzigati | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-22
How are Americans recovering financially from the coronavirus shock? Slowly. Very slowly. The widely heralded $1,200 checks for each and every low- and moderate-income American adult are only now beginning to arrive, weeks after Congress gave this aid the green light. And millions of eligible Americans may not see any help for months. Why all…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/22/hey-you-guys…

The Parliamentary Election in South Korea. Moon Jae-in Phenomenal Victory
Prof. Joseph H. Chung | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
The Democratic Party of President Moon Jae-in won a phenomenal victory at the parliamentary election on April 15. | This victory has been widely reported in media throughout the world with flattery terms. Most of the media seem to attribute this …
globalresearch.ca/the-parliamentary-elec…

Video: A Letter to the Future
James Corbett | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
I do not write these words for my contemporaries. | We are the damned. | It is our lot now to watch as the lamp of liberty is extinguished, our burden to bear witness to the final flickering of the flame of …
globalresearch.ca/video-letter-future/57…

Video: Trump Vows to End Obama Admin’s Funding to Wuhan Coronavirus Lab
Steve Watson | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
President Trump vowed over the weekend to end US funding to the tune of $3.7 million that had been approved to the Wuhan Institute of Virology by the Obama administration. | With questions swirling over the lab being the possible source …
globalresearch.ca/video-trump-vows-end-o…

This Is the Worst Employment Collapse in U.S. History by a Very Wide Margin
Michael Snyder | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
We have never seen an “employment apocalypse” in the United States like we are witnessing right now, and it is not going to end any time soon. Over the past several days, “coronavirus shutdowns” have officially been extended all over …
globalresearch.ca/worst-employment-colla…

Cuban Drug to Strengthen Natural Immunity in Trial Phase
Angel Guerra Cabrera | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
Given the threat posed by the new coronavirus, it is encouraging to learn that trials are underway in Cuba of a vaccine to strengthen innate immunity, to help reduce the risk of infectious agents entering the human body. | The new …
globalresearch.ca/cuban-drug-strengthen-…

Human Lab Rats: The U.S. Government’s Secret History of Grisly Experiments
John W. Whitehead | globalresearch.ca | 2020-04-22
“They were monsters with human faces, in crisp uniforms, marching in lockstep, so banal you don’t recognize them for what they are until it’s too late.”

Germany’s Left Party backs multibillion-euro bailout of banks and big business
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The coronavirus pandemic has thoroughly exposed the class character and political orientation of the Left Party and its pseudo-left satellites.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/left…

Senate passes another bipartisan bailout for business
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The Democrats settled for a mere $75 billion for hospitals and a derisory $25 billion for coronavirus testing. They dropped their demand for relief to state and local governments and funding for food stamps.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/bail…

Germany: Opening Berlin schools risks the lives of teachers, pupils and their families
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
“We must learn to live with the pandemic,” Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/berl…

“When the system fails, the people show up”
Eleanor Goldfield | zcomm.org | 2020-04-22
Across the US, mutual aid initiatives provide basic goods and services while building community, resilience and collective power that could outlast the pandemic…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/when-the-system-fa…

College students in New York City speak on the impact of the pandemic
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The closure of college campuses around the country last month due to social distancing protocols upended students’ lives, including those of international students.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/coll…

South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee reopening as coronavirus deaths mount
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The actions amount to a death sentence to thousands of working people, and particularly the elderly.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/sout…

India: Modi government moves to “reopen” economy as virus cases surge
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Modi and big business have cynically sought to justify their push for a premature return to work by pointing to the desperate plight of hundreds of millions of day labourers.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/coro…

Australia’s national cabinet continues back-to-work push
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
State governments are moving ahead with an easing of restrictions, including through the reopening of schools, creating the conditions for major coronavirus outbreaks.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/aust…

One Hundred and Fifty Years Since the Birth of Lenin
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
Today marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov in the Russian city of Simbirsk on April 22, 1870. Known in history under the name of Lenin, he was the founder of the Bolshevik Party, leader of the 1917 October Revolution and, undoubtedly, a towering figure in the political and intellectual history of the twentieth century.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/leni…

‘Nothing short of absurdity’: Beijing brushes off Missouri’s lawsuit accusing China of wilful spread of Covid-19
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Beijing hit back at a lawsuit by Missouri, in which the US state accuses China of causing a “preventable” pandemic, and has pointed out that the claims around which the suit revolves are nothing but unfounded. | “This so-called accusation has no factual and legal basis. It is nothing short of absurdity,” China’s foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a media briefing on Wednesday, cited by Reuters. | “Such abuse of litigation is not conducive to the epidemic response at home in the United States and also runs counter to international cooperation,” Geng said, arguing that China has, since January 3, reg…
rt.com/news/486554-missouri-china-corona…

Australia discusses intl probe into coronavirus pandemic with US, France & Germany
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has sought support for an international investigation into the coronavirus pandemic in phone calls with US President Donald Trump and the German and French leaders, the Australian government said on Wednesday. | Australia’s push for an independent review of the origins and spread of the pandemic, including the response of the World Health Organization, has drawn sharp criticism from China, which has accused Australian lawmakers of taking instructions from the US, Reuters said. | Morrison tweeted on Wednesday he had “a very constructive discussion” with Trump on the two nations’ re…
rt.com/newsline/486550-australia-us-prob…

Australian frigate joins US ships in S. China Sea amid rising tension
rt.com | 2020-04-22
An Australian frigate has joined three US warships in the South China Sea, near an area where a Chinese vessel is suspected to be exploring for oil, officials said on Wednesday. The warships arrived this week close to where the Chinese government survey ship Haiyang Dizhi 8 has been operating, which, in turn, is near where a vessel operated by Malaysia’s Petronas state oil company is conducting exploratory drilling, Reuters said, citing regional security sources. | The US navy said on Tuesday the USS America amphibious assault ship and the USS Bunker Hill, a guided missile cruiser, were operating in the South…
rt.com/newsline/486525-australia-us-chin…

Macron calls probe into coronavirus pandemic untimely, Pompeo says China ‘failed to report’ outbreak
rt.com | 2020-04-22
French President Emmanuel Macron has told Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison now was not the time for an international investigation into the coronavirus pandemic and that the urgency was to act in unison before looking for who was at fault, an Elysee official said on Wednesday. The president “agrees that there have been some issues at the start, but that the urgency is for cohesion, that it is no time to talk about this, while reaffirming the need for transparency for all players, not only the World Health Organization (WHO),” the official told Reuters. | Berlin also confirmed that Chancellor Angela Mer…
rt.com/newsline/486557-china-macron-merk…

Brazilian Covid-19 victims buried in MASS GRAVES as fatalities mount (VIDEOS)
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Authorities in the Brazilian city of Manaus have begun burying people who died from Covid-19 in mass graves after the number of people falling victim to the virus dramatically increased. | In a somber statement, Manaus City Hall said that the number of burials in public cemeteries spiraled significantly over the past few days and it has been forced to use mass graves to cope with all the fatalities. The average number of burials before the disease hit the city was approximately 30 per day. However, the daily figure has now climbed close to 100. | “The municipality has adopted the mass graves system to bury the…
rt.com/news/486560-brazil-covid-19-mass-…

Oil inventories near breaking point as American Petroleum Institute reports 13 million barrel build
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated on Tuesday another large crude oil inventory build of 13.226 million barrels for the week ending April 17. | Tuesday’s inventory build was smaller than the expected 15.15 million barrels. | In the previous week, the API estimated a large build in crude oil inventories of 13.134 million barrels , while the EIA’s estimates were for a build of 19.2 million barrels for that week. | Oil prices were trading down on Tuesday afternoon prior to t…
rt.com/business/486524-us-oil-inventorie…

Harvard refuses calls to return $8.6mn bailout money, despite sitting on endowment worth more than 100 COUNTRIES’ GDP
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Harvard University has refused a call from President Donald Trump to return millions in coronavirus bailout money, insisting it needs it for financial aid. Trump has threatened to “look at” Harvard’s fat $41-billion endowment. | The deep-pocketed Ivy League school stated on Tuesday that it would not return $8.6 million in ’emergency’ funding allotted as part of last month’s $2.2 trillion CARES Act, despite pleas from several politicians, including Trump and some members of Congress. The generous bailout package showered cash on educational institutions of all stripes without regard for their existing financial…
rt.com/usa/486570-harvard-refuses-return…

Migrant hostel hit by coronavirus as Greece mulls gradual easing of lockdown from April 27
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Dozens of migrants accommodated at a hostel in southern Greece have tested positive for Covid-19, as the government prepares for a gradual easing of a broad lockdown from April 27. The hostel, which has been quarantined since April 16, is the third migrant facility in the country to be hit by the virus. | The 497 residents, mainly from Africa, were tested after a pregnant woman tested positive last week. Results showed on Tuesday that 150 people had been infected, although none had developed any symptoms of Covid-19. | In Athens, Sotiris Tsiodras, the government’s chief scientific adviser on the virus, said th…
rt.com/newsline/486553-migrant-hostel-gr…

US reports 2,700+ coronavirus deaths in 24 hours in its 2nd biggest single-day spike as it prepares to reopen economy
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The United States has reported over 2,700 new Covid-19 fatalities in the space of a single day, AFP reported, citing data from Johns Hopkins University. The daily death toll surged as the country is gradually easing lockdowns. | Some 2,751 American deaths on Tuesday marked one of the deadliest days yet in the global health crisis, which has claimed the lives of some 44,845 people in the US alone. Still the top hotspot for the coronavirus, the US will soon surpass 825,000 cases, more than several of the next worst-hit nations combined. | The spike in fatal cases in the US comes as 20 states

Vietnam to ease coronavirus lockdown in most areas, PM says
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc agreed on Wednesday to ease the nationwide coronavirus lockdown in most parts of the country, according to state media. | No provinces in the Southeast Asian country are seen as “highly prone” to the new coronavirus, Phuc was quoted as saying on Voice of Vietnam national radio. | Vietnam has recorded 268 cases of the novel coronavirus so far, and no deaths, according to Reuters. | On Wednesday, the government in Hanoi decided to raise its white rice exports quota for April to 500,000 tons from 400,000 tons.
rt.com/newsline/486543-vietnam-ease-most…

Vietnam to ease coronavirus lockdown in most areas, PM says
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc agreed on Wednesday to ease the nationwide coronavirus lockdown in most parts of the country, according to state media. | No provinces in the Southeast Asian country are seen as “highly prone” to the new coronavirus, Phuc was quoted as saying on Voice of Vietnam national radio. | Vietnam has recorded 268 cases of the novel coronavirus so far, and no deaths, according to Reuters. | On Wednesday, the government in Hanoi has decided to raise its white rice exports quota for April to 500,000 tons from 400,000 tons.
rt.com/newsline/486543-vietnam-ease-most…

RT BAGS NINE NEW YORK FESTIVALS AWARDS, INCLUDING THREE GOLD MEDALS
rt.com | 2020-04-22
MOSCOW, APRIL 22

‘The Fed can’t print gold:’ Bank of America sees bullion price surge to $3,000
rt.com | 2020-04-22
At a time of weak economic growth and increased market volatility, analysts are getting more bullish on gold. According to Bank of America, the precious metal is headed 78 percent higher, to hit $3,000 per ounce in 18 months. | “As economic output contracts sharply, fiscal outlays surge, and central bank balance sheets double, fiat currencies could come under pressure. And investors will aim for gold,” the bank’s analysts said, adding that the US Federal Reserve has provided enough momentum to propel investment demand and prices higher. | They have warned that the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet as a percentag…
rt.com/business/486529-gold-price-growth…

Barreling down past $16: Brent crude continues its freefall, crashing to lowest point since 1999
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Brent crude oil has extended its price plunge, falling to just below $16 per barrel, a level not seen in 20 years. The decline comes as WTI crude slowly recovers after sinking into negative territory earlier this week. | Brent plummeted to as low as $15.98 per barrel on Wednesday morning, dipping by more than 24 percent, according to OilPrice.com and Reuters. The benchmark has not plumbed such depths since 1999. | The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, continued to lag on Tuesday, settling at just shy of $10.89 per barrel after its dramatic downward spiral earlier this week, which pushed WTI pr…
rt.com/business/486517-brent-crude-free-…

Kremlin says ‘not enough info’ to support claim Covid-19 began in a lab
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Speculations that the coronavirus leaked from a lab are as groundless as those saying it definitely couldn’t have, Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said, adding that it’s “unacceptable” to accuse anyone without proof. | Claims have been circulating on social media around the exact origins of Covid-19, which is believed to have started in the Chinese province of Wuhan at the end of 2019. They range from the belief that the virus may have been artificially made by scientists in a Chinese laboratory to the theory that it was brought into Wuhan by the US army

Netherlands extends ban on major public events until September 1, some schools to re-open in May
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The Netherlands is extending by three months its ban on major public events, including professional sports and music festivals, until September 1, to prevent a resurgence of coronavirus infections. However, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Tuesday an “encouraging” slowdown in the spread of the virus would enable elementary schools and daycare centers to partly re-open on May 11. | Limitations on the easing of restrictive measures are necessary to prevent a new wave of Covid-19 cases, according to Rutte. “It’s better to be cautious now than to have regrets later,” he told a televised press conference. | “I wou…
rt.com/newsline/486539-netherlands-exten…

Number of Covid-19 cases exceeds 10,000 in Poland, which plans to re-open hotels in May
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The number of people infected with the novel coronavirus in Poland rose to 10,034 on Wednesday. The death toll among the country’s population of 38 million had reached 404, the health ministry tweeted. | On Monday, the government started to relax some of the restrictions that have been imposed during the outbreak. Hotels may be allowed to re-open in May as part of a second phase, Reuters quoted government spokesman Piotr Muller as saying on Wednesday. | “The opening of hotels should be decided in May, including hotels at the seaside,” Muller told state broadcaster TVP Info.
rt.com/newsline/486531-poland-open-hotel…

Germany approves first clinical trial for potential Covid-19 vaccine
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Germany has sanctioned its first clinical trial of a potential vaccine for the novel coronavirus, the country’s Paul-Ehrlich-Institut (PEI) regulatory body has said. | The authorization is the result of “careful assessment of the potential risk/benefit profile of the vaccine candidate,” the medical institute said in a statement on Wednesday. | The potential vaccine, named BNT162, was developed by German biotech company BioNTech with US pharma giant Pfizer. | The German trial will be conducted on 200 healthy people between the ages of 18 and 55 in its first stage. After an observational waiting period, more vol…
rt.com/news/486540-german-vaccine-tiral-…

Thousands of UK healthcare workers given inaccurate Covid-19 tests, minister admits
rt.com | 2020-04-22
UK healthcare workers were given flawed Covid-19 tests, a government minister has admitted, meaning frontline staff may have returned to work carrying the deadly virus. | Junior health minister Helen Whately told Sky News on Wednesday that NHS staff have been informed that their coronavirus tests were “not up to scratch” and results may not be accurate. They have now been offered a new test. | At least 100 frontline health workers have died from Covid-19, according to the most recent figures. Defending the serious error, Whately claimed it was all part of a “normal process when you are using a test for an illn…
rt.com/uk/486532-healthcare-inaccurate-c…

First Covid-19 deaths in US occurred WEEKS EARLIER than previously thought
rt.com | 2020-04-22
People in the US were dying of the novel coronavirus weeks before authorities officially reported the first death linked to the disease, new data published in Santa Clara County, California reveals. | Autopsies performed on two people who died at home on February 6 and February 17 show that their tissues were infected with Covid-19, Santa Clara health authorities said in a statement, adding that another previously unreported death associated with the coronavirus had occurred on March 6. | The fi…
rt.com/usa/486522-first-us-covid-death-e…

Russian MPs seek to create safe havens for domestic abuse victims during quarantine
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Self-isolation has led to an alarming growth in domestic violence during quarantine when most people are required to stay at home. As a result, Russian authorities are considering softer measures for victims of abuse. | In a letter obtained by Russian newspaper RBK on Tuesday, three female deputies

Forget oil, cocaine prices in France SURGE thanks to coronavirus crisis
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The coronavirus pandemic and the travel restrictions that came with it have severely reduced the supply of illegal drugs entering France, sending prices skyrocketing and users turning to cheaper alternatives. | The go-to land routes for drug traffickers crossing into France from the Netherlands and Spain have largely been closed off, thanks to the pandemic. With traffic curtailed so severely authorities have time to thoroughly check vehicles passing through the country’s borders and as a result they’re finding more drugs. | Cannabis prices have soared by up to 60 percent in some regions of France according to…
rt.com/news/486565-cocaine-prices-surge-…

Opposition calls for official inquiry into Johnson govt’s coronavirus response
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey, a long-time detractor of Boris Johnson, has called for an official inquiry to be launched into the prime minister’s handling of the coronavirus response. | “Once we are through this crisis, there will of course need to be an independent inquiry to officially review the government’s response to the pandemic, so we can learn the lessons,” Liberal Democrats acting leader Ed Davey said. | In Davey’s estimation, the inquiry must be granted “the strongest possible powers” given the Tory government’s “shocking failures on protective equipment for staff and the slow respon…
rt.com/uk/486523-official-coronavirus-in…

Hosing down corona: WATCH Russian troops disinfect military training center in Serbia
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Russian troops who arrived in Serbia to help the country fight its coronavirus epidemic have already disinfected some 80 sites in the Balkan nation. A fresh video has caught them in action. | Footage released by the Russian Ministry of Defense showed a string of khaki-colored Kamaz trucks veering into the training compound in the city of Pozarevac. After disembarking, the servicemen in full protective gear sprayed the buildings’ interiors with a disinfectant. | The soldiers worked hand-in-hand with Serbian chemical defense troops, who took it upon themselves to decontaminate an area adjacent to the training…
rt.com/news/486510-serbia-russia-militar…

Swiss govt to ease restrictions next week, won’t impose mask-wearing obligation
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Switzerland will not impose an obligation on citizens to wear protective masks, as the country starts relaxing its coronavirus restrictions next week. Rules on keeping distance and washing hands remain the best protective measures, the government said on Wednesday. | However, some areas may need masks, with one million masks a day being supplied to retailers for two weeks, according to the government. It repeated its guidance for residents to stay home to prevent the spread of the disease, which has killed 1,217 people there so far, Reuters reported. | The country is due to start relaxing restrictions on April…
rt.com/newsline/486562-switzerland-ease-…

Russian scientists invent a technology allowing to study viruses more efficiently
rt.com | 2020-04-22
Now that the world is facing an invisible threat posed by the coronavirus, being able to manage what’s happening on a micro level is becoming even more important for human society. | One of the most recent achievements of Russian scientists, in this respect, has been a technology, which makes it possible to catch and move micro- and nanoparticles through laser beams, without any direct contact. This, in turn, could potentially allow for the manipulation of dangerous objects like viruses safely, while minimizing the risk of biological contamination. | The technology is the result of the research carried out by…
rt.com/sponsored-content/486558-russian-…

Russian Urals crude sinks below $12 amid epic oil market meltdown
rt.com | 2020-04-22
The unprecedented oil market crash this week has put Russian crude under pressure, with the Urals blend falling by almost $6 to trade below $12 per barrel, according to energy information provider Argus Media. | The Russian oil benchmark, the price of which is determined by Brent crude, was trading lower only on April 2, when it dropped to $10.54 per barrel (CIF Rotterdam). That was the weakest level since March 1999. Urals had almost doubled in price a week later, on reports of OPEC+ negotiations. | Monday’s epic crash of West Texas Intermediate, when the price of US crude fell below zero for the first time i…
rt.com/business/486541-russian-urals-oil…

Turkey repatriating nationals while fighting off virus
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
Turkey is working hard to bring back its nationals stranded abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic while working to stem its further spread, said the nation’s vice president on Wednesday.”Currently we have nearly 26,000 citizens who have applied [for evacuation] from 73 countries,” Fuat Oktay told Anadolu Agency.Oktay said that upon their return to home soil, Turkish citizens coming from abroad are spending 14 days in quarantine at 87 student dormitories in 73 of Turkey’s 81 provinces.On combating coronavirus, Oktay said: “With its health investments, and city hospitals, Turkey was confident [in fighting the virus]…
yenisafak.com/en/news/turkey-repatriatin…

It’s Lenin 150th birthday, read his ‘Letter to American Workers’
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-04-22
To mark the 150 birthday, April 22, of the outstanding revolutionary V.I. Lenin, Fight Back News Service is circulating his famous article ‘Letter to American Workers.’ | Comrades! A Russian Bolshevik who took part in the 1905 Revolution, and who lived in your country for many years afterwards, has offered to convey my letter to you. I have accepted his proposal all the more gladly because just at the present time the American revolutionary workers have to play an exceptionally important role as uncompromising enemies of American imperialism–the freshest, strongest and latest in joining in the world-wide sl…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/4/21/it-s-len…

Blame the Covid-19 failure on your governments, not on China
Davide Mastracci | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
The anti-Chinese narrative is based on false statements and serves to distract people from the failure of neoliberalism. Build hospitals and make health care universal! Cut military spending in half! Testing, not imprisonment, abuse and neglect!
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/20/1883251…

Earth Day: How to Get Ships Off Fossil Fuels (webinar)
Pacific Environment & Climate Works Found. | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
Online via Zoom…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/19/1883249…

The car industry and the climate crisis
Stephan Kroll and Christian Hofmann | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
The car companies should now be converted into providers of mobility needs based on socio-ecological sustainability. Reduction of working hours – short full time of an average of 30 hours/4 days per week for all – is part of the neceesary radical change to save human lives amid plutocratic neoliberalism.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/22/1883255…

Ramsey Orta has fallen sick after Correctional Officers threaten to give him Covid-19
WeCopwatch | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
Ramsey Orta, the man who filmed the 2014, NYPD chokehold death of Eric Garner, is facing life-threatening persecution at Midstate Correctional Facility where in recent days Covid-19 has broken out.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/19/1883249…

May Day: Honoring Frontline Workers in the Pandemic
Sharat G. Lin | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
The COVID-19 pandemic makes abundantly clear that some of the lowest-paid workers are, in fact, the most essential frontline workers. Let’s honor them on May Day – International Workers’ Day!
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/18/1883247…

UC Berkeley wants tenants to relocate during coronavirus pandemic
Lynda Carson | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/20/1883252…

Shakespeare on Trump
Entering 6th Week of Quarantine | indybay.org | 2020-04-22
As we enter the 6th week of quarantine due to Nazi Trump’s inexcusable delay in preparing for a pandemic which was known to be a threat in November 2019 , the benchmark of literature in the English language, Shakespeare’s writings, teach us that Trump is not an aberration.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/20/1883251…

Report offers insight into China’s COVID-19 response
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

OPEC unable to handle current situation solely: Zanganeh
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

‘Life Among War Flags’ to go on screen at Visions du Réel Filmfest
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Iran records 1,194 new cases, 94 deaths on Wednesday
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Iranian medical staff in fight against Covid-19
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Science minister visits Natl. Institute of Genetic Eng., Biotechnology on COVID-19
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Iran’s trade events, fairs not to be canceled this year due to pandemic
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

University Jihad studies on COVID-19
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Iran resumes consular services in Afghanistan
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Lake Urmia revived by mother nature
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
URMIA, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Iran to suffer less damage given its reduced reliance on crude oil: Rouhani
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Germany ‘positive’ about IMF’s loan to Iran: FM
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Sheikh Bahai; renowned & distinguished scholar of Safavid Era
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Headlines of Iranian dailies on April 22
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Iran’s 1st home-made military satellite put into orbit
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

IRGC puts Iran’s first military satellite into orbit
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

New coronavirus test kit cargo arrives in Iran
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

NIOC studies, prioritizes all sedimentary basins for exploration
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Coronavirus & oil price ally against Trump!
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

IRGC now capable of monitoring Earth from space: Salami
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

VIDEO: Moment of launching Noor-1 satellite by IRGC
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

Leader thanks ‘good performance’ of IRGC
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-22
TEHRAN, Apr. 22 (MNA)

China Launches Second Amphibious Assault Ship
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
China on Wednesday launched its second Type 075 amphibious assault ship, only a little more than half a year after the launch of the first one, leading Chinese military experts to say China has mastered mature technologies, prepared related aviation equipment and needs the ships in safeguarding sovereignty and territorial integrity.
sputniknews.com/military/202004221079055…

China Scales Up Strategic Oil Reserves Amid Coronavirus-Driven Global Price Slump
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
The unprecedented crude oil price collapse on the global market is good news for China, a major oil importer, which will enable the country to build up strategic reserves at favorable prices, Chinese analysts said.
sputniknews.com/business/202004221079055…

Chinese General Reveals How Country’s Army Helped Government Combat Coronavirus
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
Earlier in April, China announced the end of the lockdown in Wuhan, where the coronavirus outbreak originated in late December, but added that some restrictions within the city will remain in place.
sputniknews.com/asia/202004221079054857-…

Iran Death Toll From Coronavirus Surges to 5,391
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
The Middle Eastern country recently surpassed China in the number of infected, confirming almost 86,000 cases, which puts the Islamic Republic at eighth place in the world.
sputniknews.com/middleeast/2020042210790…

Indian IT Firms at Risk of Losing Around 3% of Revenue After Trump Halts Immigration to US – Analyst
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
New Delhi (Sputnik): With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the US hard, President Donald Trump has decided to suspend immigration to the country for the next two months, which may lead to difficulties for Indian IT specialists.
sputniknews.com/india/202004221079052871…

Police, Locals Clash Over Ration Shortage in India’s West Bengal – Videos
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
New Delhi (Sputnik): Food shortages in homes are a result of the 40-day national lockdown announced by the Indian government to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
sputniknews.com/viral/202004221079052894…

#EarthDay: It Took Shutting Down Everything to Get Blue Skies Again – Indian Environmentalist
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
New Delhi (Sputnik): The 50th Earth Day comes at a time when the world is hit by the coronavirus pandemic. The lockdowns imposed by various countries to stop the spread of the highly contagious disease have yielded unintended benefits for the environment

‘Shut the Sites and Pay the Workers’ – Professor on UK Construction Industry Amid COVID-19 Lockdown
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
Britain’s construction industry has been told it can keep operating its sites despite the government demanding that all “non-essential” business close their offices during the COVID-19 lockdown. The sector contributes £117 billion to the UK economy and accounts for a total of 2.4 million jobs, according to the latest data from parliament.
sputniknews.com/interviews/2020042210790…

Prince Charles Reveals He Watches Viral Videos During COVID-10 Lockdown
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
The eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, left self-isolation earlier this month after testing positive for the coronavirus on 25 March. As of 22 April, there are more than 124,000 registered cases of the virus in the United Kingdom, according to the World Health Organisation, and more than 16,000 fatalities.
sputniknews.com/uk/202004221079053090-pr…

Kremlin Warns Against Groundless Accusations Over COVID-19 Man-Made Origins
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Kremlin considers unacceptable groundless accusations against anyone over the alleged artificial origins of the coronavirus, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.
sputniknews.com/world/202004221079053906…

Indian Army Rescues Three People After Avalanche Engulfs Jeep in North Kashmir – Video
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
New Delhi (Sputnik): A huge avalanche has hit Sadhna Top, a high mountain pass in the northern Kashmiri district of Kupwara, engulfing a jeep of a senior government official and pushing it into a gorge more than 500 feet deep.
sputniknews.com/india/202004221079053156…

Private Company Running Protective Equipment Warehouse in UK Sold Amid Pandemic – Reports
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Movianto, a private company running a warehouse storing personal protective equipment, including hundreds of millions of face masks and gloves, in Merseyside, a metropolitan county in northwestern England, has been sold in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, The Guardian reported on Wednesday.
sputniknews.com/uk/202004221079055941-pr…

India Passes Ordiance Stipulating Up to 7 Years in Jail to End Violence Against Health Workers
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
New Delhi (Sputnik): While some Indians are expressing gratitude for healthcare workers putting their lives on the line to treat the coronavirus, others are venting their anger and disappointment at them. Attacks have been carried out on COVID-19 paramedic teams in the field and doctors in hospitals across the country.
sputniknews.com/india/202004221079053030…

Trump ‘Instructs’ Navy to ‘Shoot Down, Destroy’ Any Iranian Gunboats if They ‘Harass’ US Ships
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
The statement by POTUS comes several months after the two countries were on the verge of open hostilities after a US Air Force strike killed top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani while the latter was visiting Iraq on a diplomatic mission in January 2020.
sputniknews.com/world/202004221079055384…

UK Foreign Minister Raab Takes Questions From MPs in Johnson’s Stead – Video
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
The UK Department of Health and Social Care has confirmed more than 120,000 cases of the coronavirus disease since the start of the outbreak, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 16,000 people.
sputniknews.com/uk/202004221079053736-uk…

Lenin Was ‘a Genius Who Changed the Course of World History’, Veteran Russian Journo Says
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
Vladimir Lenin is internationally known as the leader of the 1917 October Revolution in Russia that led to the Bolsheviks coming to power.
sputniknews.com/russia/20200422107905349…

From the Arctic to Antarctica: Lenin Monuments Around the World
sputniknews.com | 2020-04-22
Vladimir Ulyanov, better known as Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary and the leader of the Bolshevik Party and the October Revolution. He was the first leader of the USSR and the government that assumed power at the end of 1917.
sputniknews.com/photo/202004221079048263…

Iran’s coronavirus death toll nears 5,400
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
With 94 new deaths reported in Iran, the death toll from coronavirus surged to 5,391, state media said on Wednesday. A total of 1,194 more people tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total infections to 85,996, Iranian state TV reported Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour as saying. | Jahanpour said 63,113 people have recovered so far and been discharged from hospitals, while 3,311 patients are in critical condition. | The virus has spread to at least 185 countries and regions since emerging in China last December, with the U.S. and Europe now the hardest-hit areas. | There are…
yenisafak.com/en/world/irans-coronavirus…

Trump to sign suspension of legal immigration to US
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday he will sign the executive order halting all legal permanent immigration to the U.S. for at least 60.”I will be signing my Executive Order prohibiting immigration into our Country today,” Trump said on Twitter. “In the meantime, even without this order, our Southern Border, aided substantially by the 170 miles of new Border Wall 27,000 Mexican soldiers, is very tight

UK PM Johnson under fire over handling of coronavirus crisis
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
Johnson initially refrained from approving the stringent controls that other European leaders imposed as the coronavirus spread, but he later closed down the country when projections showed a quarter of a million people could die in the United Kingdom.Since the lockdown, though, the government has given conflicting explanations of why it failed to join a European Union ventilator scheme and admitted there have been problems getting health workers enough protective equipment.”Once we are through this crisis, there will of course need to be an independent inquiry to officially review the government’s response to th…
yenisafak.com/en/world/uk-pm-johnson-und…

Britain’s Zoom parliament makes an almost glitch-free debut
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
British lawmakers upended 700 years of history on Wednesday, grilling stand-in leader Dominic Raab by video link in an unprecedented but largely successful ‘hybrid parliament’ session forced by the coronavirus outbreak.As Britain endures its fifth week of a national lockdown, with businesses shuttered and citizens ordered to stay at home, parliament has returned from an extended Easter break in a very unfamiliar form.A maximum of 50 lawmakers are physically allowed in the debating chamber, with another 120 permitted to join in via Zoom video conference beamed onto television screens dotted around the walls of the…
yenisafak.com/en/world/britains-zoom-par…

Politicians debate lockdown as Spain sees 435 more deaths
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
As Spain’s politicians discuss what a partial return to normalcy could look like, the country registered another 435 deaths on Wednesday, bringing the total official death toll to 21,717.More than 4,000 new cases were also confirmed, according to the Health Ministry. In total, 209,706 people have tested positive for the virus in Spain and nearly 86,000 people have recovered.Spain remains on a strict lockdown but the government announced that starting this weekend, some restrictions will be lifted on children who have been confined to their homes since March 14.Restrictions have previously been eased on non-essent…
yenisafak.com/en/world/politicians-debat…

Turkey to celebrate 100th anniversary of national assembly
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
Turkey on Thursday will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the foundation of its Grand National Assembly or parliament as well as National Sovereignty and Children’s Day.Established on April 23, 1920, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey paved the way to the foundation of the Republic of Turkey.This makes its foundation one of the most important steps in the history of Turkey’s liberation struggle.Following the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in World War I, on May 19, 1919 Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Republic of Turkey, left for the Black Sea province of Samsun to start a national liberation campaign.Then, on…
yenisafak.com/en/news/turkey-to-celebrat…

‘I | thought my lungs would explode’: | Turkish survivor warns youth to take coronavirus seriously
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
A 21-year old Turkish undergraduate who recovered from the coronavirus after being hospitalized for 10 days has warned his peers to heed the warnings of authorities and not be complacent.Even though Mehmet àñzàßetin is physically active, non-smoker and a healthy young man, he did not assume that he was immune or invincible against the deadly coronavirus and self-isolated to protect his family in Turkey’s western province of Afyon.àñzàßetin’s harrowing ordeal with the deadly disease began fourteen days after his arrival from Turkey’s northwestern àáanakkale province when he started…
yenisafak.com/en/news/ithought-my-lungs-…

Serbian envoy to Turkey grateful for aid to fight virus
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
Serbian Ambassador in Ankara on Wednesday expressed his gratitude to Turkey over sending medical aid to fight against the novel coronavirus, and said country entered the pandemic “well-prepared”.Speaking exclusively to Anadolu Agency, Ambassador Zoran Markovic said “We are particularly grateful to Turkey for the aid in diagnostic and protective equipment provided to us, as to a number of other countries in need.”Markovic also thanked “for prompt replies to facilitation requests for repatriation of our citizens, some of them traveling from further abroad and having been stranded on their return home.”Aside from th…
yenisafak.com/en/world/serbian-envoy-to-…

Days of isolation: Kids away from peers get aggressive
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
A Turkish expert has warned that children, who are not able to spend time with their peers due to curfew imposed on them to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, may get more aggressive and unhappier as the duration of social isolation gets longer.The curfew, which took effect on April 4 to restrict members of the public under age 20 from leaving their homes except if absolutely necessary, has mostly affected the kids at the play age.Warning the parents of the changes in their children’s psychological state, Mehmet Teber, a clinical psychologist and pedagogue, said that communication with their peers is a bas…
yenisafak.com/en/life/days-of-isolation-…

COVID-19: Israel stops testing samples coming from Gaza
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
Israel’s defense minister has cancelled an initiative taken by army for coronavirus testing on samples coming from the blockaded Gaza Strip, an Israeli daily said on Wednesday.The Israeli army had recently announced an initiative to perform 50 coronavirus testing per day on samples from the Gaza Strip.The initiative took place for two days and only 100 samples were tested at one of the army’s bases on the outskirts of the Gaza Strip.The Israeli government cancelled the initiative, daily Maariv reported, adding that Defense Minister Naftali Bennett himself was not aware of the army’s initiative due to “lack of com…
yenisafak.com/en/world/covid-19-israel-s…

US coronavirus death toll surpasses 45,000
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
The death toll in the U.S. from coronavirus exceeded the 45,000 mark on Wednesday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.The university’s running tally counted 45,075 deaths and 825,306 cases.The country continues to lead in COVID-19 cases and virus-linked deaths worldwide. It has nearly a double fatalities than Italy’s 24,648, and almost quadruple of Spain’s 208,389 cases.Meanwhile, almost 75,700 people have recovered, according to the university’s Coronavirus Resource Center.New York is the worst-hit state with 19,118 deaths and more than 258,500 cases, followed by New Jersey with 4,753 deaths…
yenisafak.com/en/world/us-coronavirus-de…

Trump instructs US Navy to destroy Iranian gunboats ‘if they harass our ships at sea’
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had instructed the U.S. Navy to fire on any Iranian ships that harass it at sea, a week after 11 vessels from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) came dangerously close to U.S. ships in the Gulf.”I have instructed the United States Navy to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea,” Trump wrote in a tweet, hours after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps said it had launched the country’s first military satellite into orbit.
yenisafak.com/en/world/trump-instructs-u…

German govt wants to launch tax relief worth 4.5 bln euros
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
The federal and state governments in Germany want to provide tax relief worth 4.5 billion euros ($4.89 billion) to help companies battling the coronavirus crisis, the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper reported on Wednesday without citing its sources.It said companies should be able to offset losses that they foresee against advance payments made last year, whereby an upper limit of 15% is planned. ($1 = 0.9203 euros)…
yenisafak.com/en/world/german-govt-wants…

France’s Macron says now not the time for pandemic probe
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-22
French President Emmanuel Macron told the Australian prime minister now was not the time for an international investigation into the coronavirus pandemic and that the urgency was to act in unison before looking for who was at fault, an official said.”He says he agrees that there have been some issues at the start, but that the urgency is for cohesion, that it is no time to talk about this, while reaffirming the need for transparency for all players, not only the WHO,” an Elysee official told Reuters on Wednesday.Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has sought support for an international investigation into th…
yenisafak.com/en/world/frances-macron-sa…

Lockdown reveals fresh air and cleaner rivers in India
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-04-22
India’s extended lockdown to curb the coronavirus outbreak has shut down schools, workplaces, industries, transport, and forced people to stay home.It also led to an unexpected bonus in the country with six out of 10 of the world’s most polluted cities: cleaner air.India accounts for the highest pollution-related deaths in the world with more than two million people every year, according to a December 2019 report by the Global Alliance of Health and Pollution.On 25 March, the first day of the lockdown, the average PM 2.5 levels decreased by 22% and nitrogen dioxide

RAF plane returns from Turkey PPE mission
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-04-22
An RAF plane, believed to be carrying a delayed consignment of personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS staff, has landed in the UK.Flight tracker RadarBox showed the Airbus A400-M registered ZM416 depart Istanbul and land just after 3.30am on Wednesday at RAF Brize Norton.The plane had been dispatched from the Oxfordshire base, where two other planes are on stand-by to pick up further kit from Turkey, late on Monday.It is not known if the consignment, which was ordered on Thursday and originally due to arrive on Sunday, includes 400,000 badly-needed surgical gowns. | The government has come in for mounting cr…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/20…

Starmer challenges Raab over coronavirus response at Labour leader’s first PMQs
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-04-22
The Government was accused of being slow to respond to the coronavirus crisis as Dominic Raab faced questions on testing and protection for NHS and care workers in his Prime Minister’s Questions clash with Keir Starmer.The new Labour leader and foreign secretary Raab

Stephen Hawking’s ventilator donated to NHS to help coronavirus patients
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-04-22
Stephen Hawking’s ventilator has been donated to the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge to help treat patients with coronavirus. | The physicist, who had motor neurone disease, died in 2018, aged 76. | His daughter, Lucy Hawking, said: “Our father received brilliant, dedicated and compassionate medical care from both Royal Papworth and Addenbrooke’s Hospitals in Cambridge. | “As a ventilated patient, Royal Papworth was incredibly important to my father and helped him through some very difficult times. | “We realised that it would be at the forefront of the Covid-19 epidemic and got in touch with some of our old…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/20…

UK coronavirus deaths may have reached 41,000, study finds
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-04-22
Deaths linked to coronavirus (Covid-19) in the UK may have already reached 41,000, according to new analysis.The Financial Times estimate is more than double the latest total announced by the Department of Health, which stood at 17,337 at 5pm on 20 April.The government’s figure is based almost entirely on the deaths of hospital patients who tested positive for Covid-19.Differences in reporting mean this total can include a small number of deaths outside hospital that occurred in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.The Financial Times has used separate figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS)…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/20…

Delivery Workers Call for a 24-Hours Strike in Seven Countries
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-22
Delivery workers from Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Peru, and Spain Wednesday go on strike to demand that companies increase their wages, set stable work contracts, and provide security supplies amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. | RELATED: | Hundreds of Amazon Workers Strike Over Unsafe Working Conditions | “Although our work is essential during this pandemic, we, the delivery workers, are in a difficult situation. Many of us have been forced to work longer…
telesurenglish.net/news/Delivery-Workers…

Amazon shuts down French distribution centers after court requires protection of employees from coronavirus
wsws.org | 2020-04-22
The closure is a naked act of economic blackmail, using Amazon’s control over logistics infrastructure to sabotage the distribution of essential goods.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/22/amaz…

Maritime union calls for Ruby Princess crew to be flown home
Duncan Roden | greenleft.org.au | 2020-04-22
Workers & unions Jim McIlroyIssue 1262 Australia Ruby Princess COVID-19 Maritime Union of Australia (MUA)April 22, 2020″A…
greenleft.org.au/content/maritime-union-…

Asian community stands up to escalating COVID-19 racist violence
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2020-04-22
Anti-racism Peter BoyleIssue 1262 Australia COVID-19 anti-Asian racism Jenny LeongApril 22, 2020Two young Asian women were walking in Eli…
greenleft.org.au/content/asian-community…

Would you die for Wall Street?
Duncan Roden | greenleft.org.au | 2020-04-22
Workers & unions Pip HinmanIssue 1262 Australia COVID-19 Green Left Fighting FundApril 22, 2020The grim news from the United States is a chilling reminder of just how dangerous the COVID-19 pande…
greenleft.org.au/content/would-you-die-w…

Zooming Newport’s Climate Awareness Earth Day 2020
Paul Haeder | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-04-22
Fifty years ago, the first Earth Day brought out 20 million Americans across the land

Iran Boasts of Powerful Naval Strike Missiles Following US Drills in Persian Gulf
Sputnik News | iranian.com | 2020-04-22
With two US aircraft carriers close to its shores and rising tensions at sea, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) decided to remind the world of its potent naval strike capabilities, including the Zolfaghar anti-ship missile, which has a purported 700-kilometer (434-mile) range. ‘Spine Cleaver’ IRGC Navy commander Rear Adm. Alireza Tangsiri noted earlier this …
iranian.com/2020/04/21/iran-boasts-of-po…

Iran Successfully Launches Its First Military Satellite Into Orbit
Sputnik News | iranian.com | 2020-04-22
In February, Iranian Defence Minister Amir Hatami dismissed US allegations that Tehran’s satellite carriers could be turned into military missiles and that the recent launch of a Zafar satellite was part of the Islamic Republic’s missile programme. Iran has successfully placed into orbit its first military satellite, the country’s Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday. …
iranian.com/2020/04/21/iran-successfully…

Brazil’s Bolsonaro Is Bonkers–but There’s a Method to His Madness
Andy Robinson | thenation.com | 2020-04-22
Brazil’s Bolsonaro Is Bonkers–but There’s a Method to His Madness…
thenation.com/article/world/coronavirus-…

Can Psychedelics Treat Climate Grief?
Mark Hertsgaard | thenation.com | 2020-04-22
Can Psychedelics Treat Climate Grief?
thenation.com/article/environment/psyche…

Inequality and Poverty Were Destroying America Well Before Covid-19
Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis | thenation.com | 2020-04-22
Inequality and Poverty Were Destroying America Well Before Covid-19…
thenation.com/article/society/inequality…

Iran Is Suffering Under the Coronavirus, and the US Is Imposing Fresh Sanctions
James Carden | thenation.com | 2020-04-22
Iran Is Suffering Under the Coronavirus, and the US Is Imposing Fresh Sanctions…
thenation.com/article/politics/coronavir…

Scenes From a Pandemic: 4
Cynthia Greenlee | thenation.com | 2020-04-22
Scenes From a Pandemic: 4…
thenation.com/article/politics/coronavir…

COVID-19: Will social distancing be the new normal? A Mayo Clinic expert discusses what the future might look like
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-04-22
As some states look toward relaxing restrictions and social distancing measures, such as stay-at-home orders, new projections suggest social distancing may need to continue through 2022. Researchers predict that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, will return every winter, and that prolonged or intermittent social distancing strategies could limit the strain on health care systems. …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/co…

Science Saturday: Antibody testing, in pictures
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-04-22
Convalescent plasma therapy for the treatment of COVID-19 virus infection is based on the function of antibodies, tiny proteins created by the immune system, that combat invaders to the body in a variety of ways. Some are capable of neutralizing a virus, while others work by mobilizing a range of other immune cells that fight …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/sc…