The Lancet (2020-04-04). [Editorial] COVID-19 will not leave behind refugees and migrants. thelancet.com Never has the \"leave no one behind\" pledge felt more urgent. As nations around the world implement measures to control the spread of SARS-CoV-2, including lockdowns and restrictions on individuals\' movements, they must heed their global commitments. When member states adopted the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, they promised to ensure no one will be left behind. Chief among the world\'s most vulnerable people are refugees and migrants. The COVID-19 crisis puts these groups at enormous risk.

Fay Bound Alberti (2020-04-04). [Perspectives] Face transplants as surgical acts and psychosocial processes. thelancet.com In 2017 the face of Katie Stubblefield made headlines. Not the face she was born with or the face that emerged after 22 reconstructive surgeries. This was another face altogether: a transplant that Stubblefield would receive from Adrea Schneider. There have been 46 recorded face transplants in history. Katie\'s was the 40th—only the third to have taken place at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, which also undertook the first face transplant in the USA, on Connie Culp, in 2008. According to the Cleveland Clinic, it took 11 surgeons and staff from 15 specialties more than 31 hours to transplant Stubblefield\'s new…

Richard Horton (2020-04-04). [Comment] Offline: COVID-19—what countries must do now. thelancet.com How should countries plan for the approaching health crisis caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)? In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, himself struck down with infection, has written to every household warning that, \"we know things will get worse before they get better\". The UK Government is right to prepare the public for the coming human catastrophe. All governments have a responsibility to do the same. But this advice does not go far enough. Here are five critical actions that need to be considered immediately.

Fathiah Zakham, Olli Vapalahti, Hilal A Lashual (2020-04-04). [Correspondence] Education and research are essential for lasting peace in Yemen. thelancet.com Yemen, known to many as the land of Sheba, and Manhattan of the desert, is now referred to only as one of the poorest countries on Earth. The name Yemen has become synonymous with cholera, famine, death, instability, and war. The war continues to erase the lives, history, and the future of Yemenis, and meaningful aid and peace have yet to reach Yemen.

Gorka Orive, Unax Lertxundi (2020-04-04). [Correspondence] Mass drug administration: time to consider drug pollution? thelancet.com Mass drug administration is the strategy recommended by WHO to control or eliminate many neglected tropical diseases that cause devastating consequences worldwide. This strategic approach, which has produced unquestionable benefits, consists of treating every person, infected or not, living in a defined geographical area at approximately the same time.1 In 2017, more than 1 ∑7 billion treatments (mainly albendazole, mebendazole, ivermectin, azithromycin, and praziquantel) were delivered to 1 ∑04 billion individuals.

Talha Burki (2020-04-04). [World Report] 2020 Canada Gairdner Award winners announced. thelancet.com On March 31, the Gairdner Foundation announced the winners of its annual prizes in biomedical science and global health. Talha Burki spoke with the laureates.

Juan M Pericà s (2020-04-04). [Correspondence] Authoritarianism and the threat of infectious diseases. thelancet.com Punitive social policy, encompassing the dismantling of the welfare state with the expansion of the penal state and its associated institutions, as nicely stated by Elias Nosrati and Michael Marmot in their Perspective,1 might indeed be considered an upstream social determinant of health. Nosrati and Marmot\'s analysis relates to the findings described by Navarro and colleagues,2 linking political ideology with policies aimed at reducing social inequalities such as welfare state and labour market policies.

Anna Petherick (2020-04-04). [World Report] Developing antibody tests for SARS-CoV-2. thelancet.com Laboratories and diagnostic companies are racing to produce antibody tests, a key part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Anna Petherick reports.

Renato D Lopes, Claudio Gimpelewicz, John J V McMurray (2020-04-04). [Correspondence] Chagas disease: still a neglected emergency? thelancet.com 10 years after highlighting the health consequences for millions of people infected with Trypanosoma cruzi, a 2019 report from the Pan American Health Organization concluded that there has been little progress in the prevention and treatment of Chagas disease, a problem that now extends beyond Latin America.1…

Gerardo Chowell, Kenji Mizumoto (2020-04-04). [Comment] The COVID-19 pandemic in the USA: what might we expect? thelancet.com As of March 19, 2020, 191‚Äà127 cases of, including 7807 deaths attributed to, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been reported worldwide.1 The incidence of reported cases in China has dramatically reduced to tens per day as a result of strict social distancing measures; however, the pandemic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is now generating sustained transmission in many countries including the USA. In The Lancet, Isaac Ghinai, Tristan D McPherson, and colleagues2 report details of the first known human-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in the USA, which was…

Alastair Brown, Richard Horton (2020-04-04). [Comment] A planetary health perspective on COVID-19: a call for papers. thelancet.com It is natural during the unfolding coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic to focus on emergency response planning, including containment, treatment procedures, and vaccine development, and nobody would doubt the need for these measures. However, an emergency can also open a window of opportunity for reflection and learning. We live in increasingly global, interdependent, and environmentally constrained societies and the COVID-19 pandemic exemplifies these aspects of our world. We would therefore be wise to take a broad integrated perspective on this disease, the impacts of which are already spilling over in…

thelancet (2020-04-04). [Department of Error] Department of Error. thelancet.com Mease PJ, Rahman P, Gottlieb AB, et al. Guselkumab in biologic-naive patients with active psoriatic arthritis (DISCOVER-2): a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled phase 3 trial. Lancet 2020; 395: 1126—36—In this Article, the following sentence from the Participants section has been corrected as follows: \"Patients were permitted, but not required, to continue stable use of selected standard treatments, including NSAIDs or other analgesics up to the regional marketed dose approved; oral corticosteroids (‚â§10 mg/day of prednisone or equivalent dose); or non-biologic DMARDs (limi…

Genichi Sugihara, Nori Takei (2020-04-04). [Correspondence] Obsolete medical law in Japan harms doctors\' health. thelancet.com Japan has achieved one of the most successful health-care systems in the world.1 Under the nation\'s insurance scheme, Japanese citizens have taken for granted that anyone can choose any health-care facility and receive the most advanced medical care across the nation. However, little attention has been paid to the fact that such a health system is supported by dedicated and self-sacrificing medical professionals. Such overloaded expectation is especially high in rural areas where the number of doctors remains low.

The Lancet (2020-04-04). [Editorial] Open versus endovascular repair of aortic aneurysms. thelancet.com When the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) released draft guidelines on the diagnosis and management of abdominal aortic aneurysms in May, 2018, it caused outcry. By recommending that endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) of unruptured aneurysms should not be offered—even in patients for whom open surgical repair was contraindicated—critics said that many patients would be denied life-saving treatment and that the guidelines were unworkable.

The Lancet (2020-04-04). [Editorial] Redefining vulnerability in the era of COVID-19. thelancet.com What does it mean to be vulnerable? Vulnerable groups of people are those that are disproportionally exposed to risk, but who is included in these groups can change dynamically. A person not considered vulnerable at the outset of a pandemic can become vulnerable depending on the policy response. The risks of sudden loss of income or access to social support have consequences that are difficult to estimate and constitute a challenge in identifying all those who might become vulnerable. Certainly, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, vulnerable groups are not only elderly people, those with ill health and comorbidities, or…

RT (2020-04-03). Russian declaration aimed at stopping sanctions amid coronavirus crisis REJECTED at UN General Assembly. rt.com The US, UK, and EU, as well as Ukraine and Georgia, rejected a Russian draft declaration calling for unilateral sanctions to be lifted to fight Covid-19. | Moscow\'s permanent mission to the UN issued a statement on Thursday questioning why Ukraine, Georgia, the UK, US, and EU had shot down its proposal, arguing that these nations \"refused to cast aside politicized approaches and interests,\" and that their decision could negatively affect \"a great number of people\" — especially in developing nations currently under sanctions. | The rejected motion called for broad international cooperation on combating the…

RT (2020-04-03). Coronavirus cases in Russia increase by 601, surpass 4,100. rt.com The number of coronavirus cases in Russia has increased by 601 over the past 24 hours, amounting to 4,149 in 78 regions. A total of 281 patients have recovered, 34 people have died, the coronavirus crisis center said on Friday. | \"Four coronavirus patients have died over the past 24 hours. In total, 34 people have died,\" the center said. Fatalities have been recorded in Komi Region (2), Moscow (1) and Perm Region (1), TASS reports. | New coronavirus cases have been recorded in 32 regions over the past 24 hours, including Moscow (448), Moscow Region (34), Krasnodar Region (17), Penza Region (11), Leningrad Regi…

RT (2020-04-03). Trump doubles down on \'hopes\' that Russia & Saudi Arabia will agree on oil production cut after Kremlin denies talks. rt.com Upping the ante on his expectations but not ready to offer concessions, US President Donald Trump said it \"would be great\" if Saudi Arabia and Russia reached a deal on cutting oil production \"soon\" to stabilize the global market. | \"It would be great for Russia, it would be great for Saudi Arabia… hopefully they announce something soon,\" Trump told reporters at the White House. \"I hope they can make a deal, they both want to make a deal.\" | Reiterating that he expects an oil output cut of 15 million barrels per day, Trump said he spoke personally with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Pri…

RT (2020-04-03). No idea when coronavirus-positive Boris Johnson will come out of isolation, UK health minister says. rt.com It is unclear whether Prime Minister Boris Johnson will emerge from self-isolation today, UK Health Minister Matt Hancock has said. The British leader was due to end his quarantine on April 3, but he is still showing symptoms. | \"I don\'t know about his own personal medical condition. What I do know is I\'ve been working with him every single day through this crisis,\" Hancock said of Johnson on Friday. He added that he had \"no idea\" when the prime minister would leave isolation. | His lack of certainty supports earlier rumors that the PM would not be returning to his normal routine yet. | Asked on Thursday if he…

RT (2020-04-03). Spanish parking lot converted into huge makeshift morgue as Covid-19 deaths surge (VIDEO). rt.com An indoor parking lot in Barcelona has been converted into a makeshift extension of the morgue, as the city struggles to cope with the death toll from the novel coronavirus. | Memora funeral home will be the largest field morgue in Spain, with the capacity for almost 2,000 coffins. | Fernando Sanchez, the director of communications for the facility in Barcelona, said on Thursday, \"We have the possibility to increase the capacity here and in other big funeral homes we have around the city, so the capacity will be very, very high.\" | In comparison, two new morgues set up in Madrid combined only have the capac…

RT (2020-04-03). Spain surpasses Italy in confirmed Covid-19 cases, with 7,000+ people reported ill on Friday. rt.com Spain now has more confirmed cases of Covid-19 than Italy, with the number of infections soaring to over 117,000 on Friday — an increase of around 7,000 from the previous day. | The death toll from the virus in Spain also surged to 10,935 in the last 24 hours, according to the country\'s health ministry. | While the numbers are grim, the ministry said it also marked the first fall in the daily death toll since March 26. | With almost 14,000 fatalities, Italy is still the country with the highest number of deaths, but it now appears Spain could reach similar figures within days. | Spain\'s government impose…

RT (2020-04-03). Lockdown in Italy \'will probably continue\' beyond May 1, civil protection chief says. rt.com Italy\'s national lockdown imposed to contain the spread of coronavirus will probably continue beyond the start of May, Angelo Borrelli, the head of the Civil Protection Agency, said on Friday. | The government extended the lockdown this week. Severe restrictions were imposed on movement and all services and firms not deemed essential to Italy\'s supply chain were shuttered until April 13. | Answering a question about whether the measures would need to remain in place many more weeks, Borrelli said in a radio interview with state broadcaster RAI: \"Unfortunately they will.\" | \"I don\'t believe this situation… wi…

John Grant (2020-04-03). Is the Pandemic Patriarchal? counterpunch.org Newsflash, The New York Times, March 31, 2020: As the coronavirus pandemic brings the world to a juddering halt and anxious citizens demand action, leaders across the globe are invoking executive powers and seizing virtually dictatorial authority with scant resistance. . . . As the new laws broaden state surveillance, allow governments to detain people indefinitely

RT (2020-04-03). Germany\'s Merkel ends self-quarantine, returns to work at chancellery. rt.com German Chancellor Angela Merkel has ended her self-quarantine and returned to the chancellery on Friday after testing negative for coronavirus several times, according to her spokesman. | Merkel had been self-quarantining and working from home after receiving a vaccination on March 20 from a doctor who was later found to have coronavirus. | On Wednesday, Merkel said Germany will extend social distancing measures introduced last month to slow the spread of the coronavirus to April 19. The government will re-evaluate the situation after the Easter holiday, Reuters quoted her as saying.

RT (2020-04-03). EU member states in talks over possible border closure extension — von der Leyen. rt.com European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday that talks were under way among EU member states over whether or not to extend border closures beyond Easter in order to tackle the coronavirus crisis. | \"We are in consultation with member states on how to proceed beyond Easter,\" she told radio station Europe 1. | Von der Leyen also reiterated that the next EU budget should take the form of a new \"Marshall Plan\" to drive Europe\'s recovery from the coronavirus outbreak. | She feels that Europe will emerge from the coronavirus crisis in a stronger state, Reuters quoted her as saying.

RT (2020-04-03). Nationwide lockdown could cost Indian economy over $4 BILLION A DAY. rt.com The 21-day complete shutdown across India which was triggered by the rapid spread of the coronavirus outbreak will result in a gross domestic product (GDP) loss of almost $98 billion, according to Acuite Ratings & Research. | \"While the countrywide shutdown is scheduled to be lifted from April 15, 2020, the risks of prolonged disruption in economic activities exist depending on the intensity of the outbreak,\" the credit rating agency said, adding that the ongoing disruption will have significant economic consequences across the world as well as in India. | Acuite Ratings has warned there is a risk of a contrac…

RT (2020-04-03). \'So cute! What are they called?\' Indian couple names newborn twins COVID and CORONA. rt.com Coronavirus fever has taken a strange turn in India, with a couple naming their newborn twins Corona and Covid — reportedly to remind them about the hard times they are enduring amid the epidemic. | As India is under a nationwide lockdown aimed at stopping the spread of coronavirus, a couple from the Indian city of Raipur found unusual inspiration from the situation. | They decided to name their boy Covid and their girl Corona. | The 27-year-old mother told PTI news agency that these will be their names for now, but that they might change them later. | \"When the hospital staff also started calling the ba…

The Canary (2020-04-03). The Tories are probably hoping we\'re too distracted to notice the investigation into EU election spending. thecanary.co The Conservative Party is probably hoping that we\'re all too distracted by the coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic to notice the party is under investigation over their campaign spending during the European Parliament elections.The Electoral Commission said five parties are being examined after submitting spending reports which were missing information that would give voters a \"complete picture of their campaign spending\".It added that parties are required by law to provide complete lists of all campaign payments and supporting invoices or receipts for payments of more than £200.It confirmed two investigations…

RT (2020-04-03). New grim record: US becomes 1st country to report 1,000+ Covid-19 deaths in single day as global infections top 1 million. rt.com The United States has reached yet another dark milestone in the coronavirus pandemic, counting over 1,000 fatalities in the span of 24 hours and shattering the global record for daily deaths as worldwide cases soar past 1 million. | Surpassing both its own one-day record — broken every day this week — as well as that of Italy and Spain, the previous world leaders in daily fatalities, the US reported 1,169 new deaths on Thursday evening, according to Johns Hopkins University. |

RT (2020-04-03). \'Stop coming to Beijing,\' China advises foreign diplomats. rt.com China\'s Foreign Ministry is advising foreign diplomats to stop coming to Beijing. Spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters during a daily briefing that the ministry was aware of confirmed coronavirus cases among foreign diplomats in China, Reuters reported. | Beijing has indefinitely banned foreigners from entering the country to curb cases involving travelers from overseas. However, China has chartered planes to repatriate its nationals in countries with severe outbreaks. | The National Health Commission on Friday reported 31 new cases, compared with 35 a day earlier and down dramatically from the height of th…

Michael T. Klare (2020-04-03). Avenger Planet: Is the COVID-19 Pandemic Mother Nature\'s Response to Human Transgression? counterpunch.org As the coronavirus sweeps across the planet, leaving death and mayhem in its wake, many theories are being expounded to explain its ferocity. One, widely circulated within right-wing conspiracy circles, is that it originated as a biological weapon developed at a secret Chinese military lab in the city of Wuhan that somehow (perhaps intentionally?) escaped

RT (2020-04-03). \'Missing in action\': Trump savages Schumer in scathing letter after criticism of Covid-19 response. rt.com US President Donald Trump penned a blistering letter slamming Senator Chuck Schumer (D-New York) as \"missing in action\" during the Covid-19 pandemic, firing back after the lawmaker attacked the federal response to the crisis. | \"Thank you for your Democrat public relations letter and incorrect sound bites, which are wrong in every way,\" the missive begins, responding to the Senate minority leader\'s

Eds. (2020-04-03). Brazil Supreme Court asks to suspend Bolsonaro for 180 days. mronline.org Marco Aurélio Mello, a Minister of Brazil\'s Supreme Court, sent the Attorney General\'s Office a request to suspend President Jair Bolsonaro from his post for 180 days for committing various actions that have put the country at risk in the face of the covid-19 health emergency, according to a Telesur report.

The Canary (2020-04-03). More refugees attempt Channel crossing as covid-19 reaches Calais camps. thecanary.co At least 52 refugees, including five children, risked their lives to cross the Channel on 2 April.They were intercepted by Border Force travelling across the Dover straits in four inflatable boats, the Home Office confirmed late on Thursday.It comes as two cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in the Calais refugee community and another in a refugee camp in Dunkirk.Border Force officers bring to shore men thought to be migrants in Dover (Gareth Fuller/PA)Despite pictures taken in Dover appearing to show Border Force officials not wearing protective gear, the Home Office reiterated that all operational staff have…

RT (2020-04-03). Amazon executives conspired to smear fired worker who led protest over Covid-19 safety conditions. rt.com Amazon\'s top lawyer crafted a strategy to scapegoat the man who organized a protest at a New York warehouse, calling the African-American ex-employee \'not smart, or articulate.\' President Obama\'s ex-spokesman helped carry it out. | Chris Smalls was fired on Monday, after he led up to 50 of his colleagues at a Staten Island warehouse to walk out in protest over what they described as unsafe working conditions at the mammoth facility, including the lack of protective gear for the workers. A number of political and media figures, including Democrat presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), condemned…

RT (2020-04-03). \'Not even a little bit!\' Trump sees no witch-hunt in US Navy firing Covid-19 whistleblower captain. rt.com US President Donald Trump rejected claims that a recently sacked Navy captain was unfairly persecuted for blowing the whistle on an inadequate response to a Covid-19 outbreak on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, calling for evacuation. | Asked whether the aircraft carrier commander, Captain Brett Cozier, was being \"punished\" for sending a letter directly to senior officials urging them to save the lives of his crewmen, the president was dismissive. | \"No, I don\'t agree with that at all. We\'re going to wait for a little while… but I don\'t agree with that at all,\" Trump told reporters at a White House briefing on Th…

RT (2020-04-03). OPEC+ set to hold urgent meeting to stabilize oil market. rt.com The members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and major oil producers are set to hold their first meeting after the collapse of the previous deal, non-OPEC member Azerbaijan has announced. | During the talks, which are set to be held on Monday via video conference, the participants will discuss the situation in the oil market and the new declaration of cooperation, Azerbaijan\'s Ministry of Energy said in a statement on Friday. It added that the meeting will be held on the invitation of the de facto leader of the oil alliance, Saudi Arabia, which called for an urgent meeting \"to tr…

ICFA (2020-04-03). Angola 3 Newsletter: DECARCERATE!!!! indybay.org We dedicate this newsletter to the men, women and children in detention centers, jails and prisons, where they are unable to social distance or sanitize–leaving them to anxiously wait for the virus to take hold in their facilities. Please encourage your local governments to take action before the virus hits.

Sasha Abramsky (2020-04-03). The Covid-19 Crisis Is Exposing Trump\'s Criminality. thenation.com The Covid-19 Crisis Is Exposing Trump\'s Criminality…

news.un (2020-04-03). COVID-19: from conflict to pandemic, migrants in Bosnia face a new challenge. news.un.org Migrants and refugees hosted at UN-run reception centres in Bosnia-Herzegovina, are learning to cope with the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

WSWS (2020-04-03). Germany marked an increase in violent attacks on refugees in 2019. wsws.org The Left Party has been instrumental, along with the country\'s other political parties, in creating a hostile climate and the corresponding explosion of violence against refugees and immigrants.

WSWS (2020-04-03). Julian Assange still held on remand as coronavirus spreads through UK prisons. wsws.org The WikiLeaks founder, held in Belmarsh prison and facing extradition to the US for exposing war crimes, has a chronic lung condition and has had his health destroyed by a decade of mistreatment by the British state…

WSWS (2020-04-03). Mounting protests in Canada\'s construction industry over lack of safety measures to counter COVID-19. wsws.org A petition launched by a construction worker in Ontario calling for the shutdown of the entire industry quickly secured over 50,000 signatures.

Kathy Kelly (2020-04-03). \"He\'s Got Eight Numbers, Just Like Everybody Else\" dissidentvoice.org On April 4, 2020, my friend Steve Kelly will begin a third year of imprisonment in Georgia\'s Glynn County jail. He turned 70 while in prison, and while he has served multiple prison sentences for protesting nuclear weapons, spending two years in a county jail is unusual even for him. Yet he adamantly urges supporters …

Juan Cole (2020-04-03). Coronavirus and Georgia\'s Kemp: How the GOP Stupidocracy will Kill us All. zcomm.org I don\'t think Kemp is stupid in the sense of lacking intelligence. I think he is stupid in the sense of letting things get in the way of his intelligence— whether they be ridiculous ideological commitments or slavish obedience to campaign donors or fear of angering Donald Trump…

Paul Street (2020-04-03). Silver Linings Amidst the Capitalist Coronavirus Crisis. counterpunch.org The COVID-19 crisis is confronting U.S.-Americans with yet more undeniable evidence of the complete craziness and cruelty of American capitalism and class rule more broadly. The demented viciousness of the possessing class\'s parasitic profits regime and many elite professionals\' privileged status are being exposed in graphic ways. It is absurd that the nation\'s economic system

Ramzy Baroud (2020-04-03). Tunisia Leads the Way: New Report Exposes Israel\'s False Democracy. counterpunch.org Tunisia is the Middle East\'s greatest success story, according to the findings of the V-Dem Annual Democracy Report 2019. One of the world\'s most regarded annual reports on democracy and good governance, the V-Dem Report is produced by the V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy) Institute at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. While Tunisians can be

RootsAction (2020-04-03). Pandemic and Bernie Sanders: \"Still Ahead of His Time\" zcomm.org Progressive Advocates Release Video Illustrating Senator Bernie Sanders\' Career-Long Support for a System Able to Solve Healthcare Crises…

WSWS (2020-04-03). Why is the World Socialist Web Site banned from the subreddit r/coronavirus? wsws.org The subreddit r/coronavirus has banned content from the World Socialist Web Site from being shared among its 1.8 million reader-members. We are demanding that the moderators explain why this decision has been made and immediately reverse this act of political censorship.

The Commonwealth Club (2020-04-03). Livestream: Democracy and COVID-19: What Happens Next? indybay.org Online via livestream…

RT (2020-04-02). Thousands of quarantined sailors from USS Theodore Roosevelt to be temporarily housed in Guam hotels. rt.com Sailors from a coronavirus-infected US aircraft carrier are to occupy hundreds of hotel rooms in Guam as the US Navy expedites blanket testing of the crew. Earlier, the captain of the ship wrote a scolding memo on the evacuation. | USS Theodore Roosevelt had to cut short its mission in the South China Sea and dock in Guam last week due to an outbreak of the novel coronavirus on board. The ship herself is unsuitable for proper quarantine measures, while Naval Base Guam doesn\'t have the capacity to house enough crew members in quarantine. So Navy leaders are in talks with Guam hoteliers and preparing to occupy v…

RT (2020-04-02). \'Iran has FRIENDS, not proxies\' — Zarif blasts Trump following \'sneak attack\' claims. rt.com Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif hit back at the US after President Trump accused Iran of planning a \"sneak attack\" on US troops and assets in Iraq. | Zarif took to Twitter to warn his followers not to \"be [misled] by usual warmongers, AGAIN,\" then tagging US president Donald Trump. \"Iran has FRIENDS. No one can have MILLIONS of \'proxies\',\" he continued. | Don\'t be mislead by usual warmongers, AGAIN, Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of\"proxies\" | Unlike the US—which surreptitiously lies, cheat…

RT (2020-04-02). UN postpones global climate summit in Glasgow until 2021. rt.com This year\'s United Nations global climate summit will be postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic, host country Britain has said. The UK government said the meeting, due to take place in November in Glasgow, Scotland, will now be held next year at a date still to be determined. | The government said in a statement on Wednesday that \"in light of the ongoing, worldwide effects of Covid-19, holding an ambitious, inclusive COP26 in November 2020 is no longer possible.\" The meeting is formally known as the 26th Conference of the Parties. | The decision was made by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change,…

RT (2020-04-02). Saudi Arabia won\'t undermine Russia-US energy deal & risk facing oil price war on two fronts — market analyst to RT. rt.com If Moscow and Washington strike a deal to boost the sinking oil markets, Saudi Arabia had better stay out of their way, according to analysts who spoke to RT. | The US and Russia agreed to engage in energy talks earlier this week, as both the global coronavirus crisis and the oil row between Russia and Saudi Arabia sent crude prices into a tailspin. International benchmark Brent and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crashed to 18-year lows on Monday, but they have slightly recovered since then with the news of a possible deal. | The prices could plunge lower if no agreement is reached, analysts have told RT. Ac…

RT (2020-04-02). Oil price war: Is it game over for Trump? rt.com As the US government tries to convince Russia and Saudi Arabia to put an end to the oil price war, it might just be too little, too late for the Trump Administration. | Saudi Arabia has already hired additional supertankers and a wave of additional supply is about to set sail, according to Saudi Aramco has also apparently f…

RT (2020-04-02). Sad Covid-19 record for Russia: 771 new cases registered across the country. rt.com The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases has grown by 771 in Russia on Thursday, marking the biggest single-day increase in patients since the start of the outbreak. | Over the past 24 hours, 771 more people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Russia, bringing the total number of cases reported nationwide to 3,548, the country\'s disease response officials say. | Six more patients have died, bringing the total death toll from Covid-19 to 30. | The majority of the new cases — 595 — have been reported in Moscow, while 43 were recorded in the region around the capital, and 22 in Russia\'s second-largest ci…

RT (2020-04-02). Ireland\'s restrictions may go beyond April 12, deputy PM says. rt.com The highly restrictive measures Ireland put in place last week to slow the spread of coronavirus may well be extended beyond the initial deadline of April 12, Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney said on Thursday. | Ireland\'s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar significantly ramped up previous restrictions last Friday when he ordered citizens to stay home and only leave to shop for groceries, for brief individual physical exercise or make absolutely essential family visits, Reuters said. Coveney says \"people do need to realize that these restrictions may go on for some time.\" | \"We\'ve set an initial period but I think…

RT (2020-04-02). Covid-19 deaths in Belgium top 1,000 as worldwide cases approach one million. rt.com Belgium\'s death toll from the Covid-19 virus has topped 1,000, officials have confirmed, with 183 new deaths in the last 24 hours. | As of April 2, Belgium, which has a population of 11.4 million, has recorded more than 15,300 cases of the coronavirus infection. | Health officials in the country said earlier this week that a 12-year-old girl infected with Covid-19 had died of the illness, noting that such a young fatality is a \"very rare occurrence.\" | Belgium is one of many countries in Europe on an almost total lockdown to battle the coronavirus crisis. Belgians are only allowed to leave their homes to buy e…

RT (2020-04-02). Serbian govt to revoke coronavirus information control decree. rt.com Serbia\'s government will revoke a decree giving it control over information on the coronavirus outbreak. The decision follows protests and the detention of a journalist for reporting that a major hospital lacked protective gear and properly trained staff, Reuters reports. | Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said the decree, which came into force on Saturday, would be revoked on Thursday \"so not a shadow could be cast on our work.\" | The emergency measure, which said information about the coronavirus outbreak could only come from Brnabic or those authorized by her, had drawn criticism from the Organization for Securit…

RT (2020-04-02). Pentagon seeks 100,000 body bags as Covid-19 fatalities top 5,000 in US after deadliest day to date. rt.com The Pentagon is looking to hand out 100,000 body bags as hospitals and morgues are overrun with coronavirus fatalities, with the US breaking its daily death toll record yet again, surpassing 5,000 in total. | The Defense Department will first distribute military-style \"Human Remains Pouches\" from a stockpile of 50,000 units to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and will later seek to purchase more, Pentagon officials told several media outlets on Wednesday. | The request from FEMA comes as the US sees its Covid-19 outbreak accelerate across all 50 states, counting nearly 1,000 new deaths on Wednes…

RT (2020-04-02). Gold rush amid coronavirus & economic uncertainty leads to shortage in small bars & coins. rt.com As Covid-19 disrupts the global economy, people are snapping up small gold bars and coins, confirming once again the yellow metal\'s safe haven reputation during times of uncertainty. | The price of gold hit a seven-year high of more than $1,700 per troy ounce on March 9, as a result of the deepening economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak. | \"People want to buy, not to sell, gold,\" Mark O\'Byrne, the founder of GoldCore, a dealer based in Dublin, told Bloomberg. \"We have a buyers\' waiting list and we emailed our clients seeing who wished to sell their gold. At this time there are roughly only one or two sel…

RT (2020-04-02). Emmy-winning musician & co-founder of Fountains of Wayne, Adam Schlesinger, dies of coronavirus at 52. rt.com Award-winning songwriter and musician Adam Schlesinger has passed away after contracting Covid-19 and spending several days on a ventilator, according to his attorney. He was 52 years old. | The musician died in a New York Hospital on Wednesday, his lawyer Josh Grier told the Associated Press. Winning three Emmy awards and one Grammy, Schlesinger was perhaps best known for his work with the New York City-based band Fountains of Wayne and its Grammy-nominated single \'Stacy\'s Mom\'. | He also wrote music for a number of films and television shows, including the 1997 comedy \'That Thing You Do\' — directed b…

RT (2020-04-02). More than 500,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in Europe: AFP tally. rt.com There are now more than 500,000 confirmed cases of the Covid-19 virus across Europe, according to the latest tally by the AFP news agency. | The new count comes as the death toll from the virus has topped 10,000 in Spain, with confirmed cases there surging to over 110,000. French health officials confirmed 509 deaths from the virus yesterday, taking the country\'s death toll to more than 4,000. | The UK also saw its biggest daily rise in coronavirus deaths this week, with 563 new fatalities reported on Wednesday. Confirmed cases of the infection have been soaring in the UK, with almost 30,000 testing positive f…

RT (2020-04-02). German tabloid Bild in hot water for giving airtime to Covid-19 testing firm currently under investigation. rt.com German tabloid Bild has come under fire after airing an interview with an ex-Playboy model who founded a controversial online startup selling pricey coronavirus home test kits. The company appeared to raise many red flags. | \"Now, you can get coronavirus tests delivered right [to your] home,\" a smiling presenter happily tells Germans in a

The Canary (2020-04-02). Some Covid-19 patients could have treatment withdrawn to save others. thecanary.co Coronavirus patients could have their treatment withdrawn and offered to others who are more likely to survive, new guidance for doctors has warned.The British Medical Association\'s (BMA) latest ethics advice said health professionals could be forced to make \"grave decisions\" should hospitals become overwhelmed with patients.The document warns that decisions around rationing scarce resources, such as ventilators, could determine whether large numbers of patients will receive life-saving treatment or not.It comes as the UK experienced its biggest day-on-day rise in deaths so far, with the government now facing inc…

RT (2020-04-02). Spain reports 110,238 coronavirus cases, almost reaches Italy's numbers. rt.com A total of 950 Covid-19 patients have died in Spain in the last 24 hours, bringing the nationwide death toll from the coronavirus to over 10,000 people. | With 10,003 deaths from Covid-19 as of Thursday, Spain has become the second European nation, after Italy, where the disease has killed more than 10,000 patients. | The number of confirmed cases across the country has grown by 8,102, bringing the total to 110,238. Nearly 27,000 people have recovered since the start of the outbreak. | Spain, where the disease has been raging since February, remains Europe\'s second hardest-hit country, with the daily death rat…

RT (2020-04-02). Hungary emergency measures \'went too far\' — EU\'s von der Leyen. rt.com European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has expressed concern that coronavirus restriction measures taken by Hungary go \"too far\" and insisted they should be time-limited and subject to scrutiny. | On Monday, Hungary\'s parliament granted Prime Minister Viktor Orban an open-ended right to rule by decree. It also introduced jail sentences for anyone hindering measures to curb the spread of the virus or spreading false information about the pandemic, Reuters said. | \"I am concerned that certain measures go too far and I am particularly concerned about the situation in Hungary,\" von der Leyen told repor…

RT (2020-04-02). Greece quarantines first migrant camp after 20 asylum seekers test positive for coronavirus. rt.com Athens has quarantined a migrant camp after 20 asylum seekers tested positive for coronavirus, the first such facility in Greece to be hit since the outbreak of the disease. Any movement in or out of the Ritsona camp, which is 75km (45 miles) northeast of Athens and hosts hundreds of people, will be restricted for 14 days. | Tests on 63 people were conducted after a 19-year-old female migrant who gave birth in an Athens hospital was found to be infected. This was the first recorded case among thousands of asylum seekers living in overcrowded camps across Greece. | None of the confirmed cases showed any symptom…

Rebecca Gordon (2020-04-02). The Future May Be Female, But the Pandemic is Patriarchal. counterpunch.org Before I found myself \"sheltering in place,\" this article was to be about women\'s actions around the world to mark March 8th, International Women\'s Day. From Pakistan to Chile, women in their millions filled the streets, demanding that we be able to control our bodies and our lives. Women came out in Iraq and Kyrgyzstan,

RT (2020-04-02). Los Angeles man tries to RAM train into \'suspicious\' US Navy hospital ship \'to wake people up\'. rt.com An engineer in Los Angeles was charged after attempting to ram a train at full speed into a Navy hospital ship sent to assist with the Covid-19 pandemic, in a bizarre effort to \"wake up\" Americans to a vague government conspiracy.

RT (2020-04-02). \'Criminal blockade\': Cuba outraged as delivery of Covid-19 aid from Alibaba chief aborted \'at the last minute\' due to US sanctions. rt.com Cuba has slammed the US\' \"criminal blockade\" of the country after the embargo stood in the way of the delivery of Covid-19 test kits and ventilators donated by Chinese e-commerce tycoon Jack Ma. | \"The criminal blockade of the imperial government violates the human rights of the Cuban people,\" President Miguel Diaz-Canel tweeted on Wednesday. |

RT (2020-04-02). Netanyahu, just out of isolation, goes back in after health minister tests positive for Covid-19. rt.com On Wednesday evening, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ended his self-isolation period, but now he has to go back into quarantine after another senior official tested positive for Covid-19. | Netanyahu is one of several top government officials who will be quarantined following the positive test of Health Minister Yaakov Litzman. Others include Yossi Cohen, the head of the Israeli spy agency Mossad, National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat, and several leadership-level figures in the Health Ministry who all recently came into contact with Litzman. | The 71-year-old health minister and his wife Chava…

RT (2020-04-02). EU\'s top court says eastern states broke law by refusing to host refugees. rt.com The European Union\'s top court has ruled that Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic had broken the law by refusing to host refugees to help ease the burden on Greece and Italy after a surge in migrant arrivals from 2015. | \"By refusing to comply with the temporary mechanism for the relocation of applicants for international protection, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic have failed to fulfill their obligations under EU law,\" the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the EU said on Thursday. | The decision underscores Europe\'s divisions over migration. However, the three ex-communist nations face no immedia…

Eoin Higgins (2020-04-02). Threat of ICE Detention Centers Turning Into Death Camps, Groups Rallying to Free Families. indybay.org ICE is making the pandemic more dangerous for everyone.

WSWS (2020-04-02). As COVID-19 pandemic exposes failure of capitalism, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez shifts to the right. wsws.org Ocasio-Cortez is increasingly lining up behind the Democratic Party establishment at the very point that the coronavirus catastrophe is demonstrating the failure of the capitalist system and discrediting all of its political parties and representatives.

Ajit Singh (2020-04-02). US pushes conspiracy theory on China\'s coronavirus death toll to deflect from Trump administration failures. thegrayzone.com A widely disseminated and highly dubious story asserting China concealed tens of thousands of deaths originated from a US government…

Belinda J. Gabbe, William Veitch, Kate Curtis, Kate Martin, David Gomez, Ian Civil, Chris Moran, Warwick J. Teague, Andrew J.A. Holland, Fiona Lecky, Mark Fitzgerald, Avery Nathens, Anthony Joseph (2020-04-02). [Research Paper] Survey of major trauma centre preparedness for mass casualty incidents in Australia, Canada, England and New Zealand. thelancet.com The disaster preparedness of MTCs was high for communication, safety and security but there was clear need for improvement in other areas including surge capacity, human resources and post-disaster recovery.

Protest News (2020-04-02). Innovative COVID-19 Safe Protest in San Francisco. indybay.org Boisterous Car Rally Honks for Justice for ICE Detainees…

Ramzy Baroud (2020-04-02). Tunisia Leads the Way: New Report Exposes Israel\'s False Democracy. dissidentvoice.org Tunisia is the Middle East\'s greatest success story, according to the findings of the V-Dem Annual Democracy Report 2019. One of the world\'s most regarded annual reports on democracy and good governance, the V-Dem Report is produced by the V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy) Institute at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. While Tunisians can be …

teleSUR (2020-04-02). China Scientists Seek Possible COVID-19 Antibodies Treatment. telesurenglish.net A team of Chinese scientists has isolated several antibodies that it says are \"extremely effective\" at blocking the ability of the new coronavirus to enter cells, which eventually could help treat or prevent COVID-19. | RELATED: | Zhang Linqi at Tsinghua University in Beijing said a drug made with antibodies like the ones his team has found could be used more effectively than the current approaches, including what he cal…

Liu Jian (2020-04-02). How COVID-19 Changed Our Lives: a Report From Beijing. counterpunch.org On January 18, after attending a meeting in Hangzhou, I planned to return to my home in Beijing. At that time, the Spring Festival in China was approaching. Although I had started buying tickets one week in advance, I still did not get a high-speed train ticket from Hangzhou to Beijing so I had to

WSWS (2020-04-02). Amid growing anger over criminal response to COVID-19 crisis, Washington threatens war. wsws.org Trump issued threats against Iran and Venezuela yesterday, both weaponizing the pandemic and desperately seeking to divert mounting social tensions in the US itself.

WSWS (2020-04-02). Indonesian government declares \"national emergency\" after downplaying coronavirus threat. wsws.org A University of Indonesia report has warned that 240,000 people may die in the pandemic this month without a substantial government intervention.

WSWS (2020-04-02). Modi government represses desperate migrant workers amid calamitous coronavirus lockdown. wsws.org People across India and around the world have been shocked and outraged by the pictures of poor migrant workers caught up in the Indian government\'s ill-conceived and socially reckless 21-day nationwide coronavirus lockdown.

Lynda Carson (2020-04-02). Trump\'s IRS makes it difficult for seniors to receive coronavirus $1,200 stimulus checks. indybay.org Surprise, surprise, yesterday the IRS sent out a shocking release that states, \"The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service today announced that distribution of economic impact payments will begin in the next three weeks and will be distributed automatically, with no action required for most people. However, some seniors and others who typically do not file returns will need to submit a simple tax return to receive the stimulus payment.\"

Stephen Corry (2020-04-02). It\'s Time to Clean Ecofascism Out of Environmentalism. counterpunch.org The coronavirus pandemic is lethal, but could there be a silver lining beyond the pain? Social media is awash with how the newly cleaned environment is hosting wildlife not seen for years. Dolphins are swimming in Venetian canals: except they aren\'t, they\'re really near Sardinia as usual. Swans? Yes, but they\'ve always been there. The

Brenda Norrell (2020-04-02). Navajo Nation cases of coronavirus increase to 214 with seven deaths. indybay.org The Navajo Nation has 214 cases of coronavirus, 40 new cases in the past 24 hours, and seven deaths. The Navajo President said they are in urgent need of more test kits. Doctors on the Navajo Nation said they need more critical care nurses, ventilators and masks.

Rafia Zakaria (2020-04-02). Domestic Violence and Coronavirus: Hell Behind Closed Doors. thenation.com Domestic Violence and Coronavirus: Hell Behind Closed Doors…

WSWS (2020-04-02). Stock market sell-off resumes. wsws.org The renewed market downturn followed statements by President Trump that US deaths from the coronavirus could be 240,000 while hinting that the toll could be even higher.

WSWS (2020-04-02). Nightingale field hospital completed in London to cope with mass coronavirus deaths. wsws.org While clearly the new hospital is a much-needed facility, given the criminal starving of resources in Britain\'s health care system, for many who are taken there it will be little more than a waiting room for the dying.

P. Sainath (2020-04-02). What We Should Do About COVID-19. counterpunch.org With his first speech on the coronavirus, Prime Minister Narendra Modi got us to scare evil spirits away by having people bang the hell out of their pots and pans. With his second, he scared the hell out of all of us. With not a word on how the public, particularly the poor, are to

WSWS (2020-04-02). Alberta\'s right-wing UCP government exploits coronavirus pandemic to lay off at least 20,000 education workers. wsws.org Jason Kenney\'s United Conservative Party government slashed all non-teacher salary funding to Alberta school boards Saturday, which will force the layoff of at least 20,000 teaching assistants, cleaners, and other support staff.

WSWS (2020-04-02). US Conference of Mayors survey shows severe lack of equipment to combat coronavirus pandemic. wsws.org As the US death toll nears 5,000, a report to the federal government from mayors of 213 cities showing a desperate shortage of lifesaving equipment has fallen on deaf ears.

Binoy Kampmark (2020-04-02). The Swedish Alternative: Coronavirus as a Grand Gamble. counterpunch.org As draconian lockdowns, punitive regimes and surveillance become the norm of the coronavirus world, Sweden has treaded more softly in the field. This is certainly in contrast to its Scandinavian cousins, Denmark and Norway. The rudiments of a life uninterrupted generally remain in place. Cafes, restaurants and shops, for the most part, remain open and

Women\'s March (2020-04-02). Webinar: Disability Justice in the Time of Coronavirus (Women\'s March). indybay.org Online via zoom…

WSWS (2020-04-02). US Navy aircraft carrier commander seeks evacuation of entire crew to stem outbreak of coronavirus. wsws.org The crisis on the USS Theodore Roosevelt is only the most acute indication of the serious impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the operations of the American military machine.

John Feffer (2020-04-02). We Need a Coronavirus Truce. zcomm.org International cooperation needs to take priority right now, and countries must stop their wars against one another and against their own populations…

WSWS (2020-04-02). Coronavirus freezes Democratic presidential campaign as states postpone primaries. wsws.org Fourteen states have either delayed presidential primaries or extended deadlines for voting by mail.

WSWS (2020-04-02). Hospital closures continue in Germany despite COVID-19 pandemic. wsws.org Although every hospital bed in Germany is needed because of the coronavirus pandemic, many hospitals are facing closure, especially in more rural areas.

Rev. William Alberts (2020-04-02). The Coronavirus Rained on Trump\'s Easter Charade. counterpunch.org In the face of the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump was hell-bent on loosening social restraints so that churches could be \"packed\" on Easter (April 12). Never mind that health care experts warned that such a premature move would worsen the spread of the virus, overwhelm hospitals with patients, lead to countless deaths and result in