UN Ceasefire Defines War As a Non-Essential Activity
Medea Benjamin | zcomm.org | 2020-04-15
Let's insist that the U.S. government call off its airstrikes, artillery and night raids in Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, Syria and West Africa, and support ceasefires in Yemen, Libya and around the world…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/un-ceasefire-defines-war-as-a-non-essential-activity/

"I Want an Apology": Black Doctor Who Tests Homeless for Coronavirus Handcuffed by Miami Police
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-15
We speak with Dr. Armen Henderson, an African-American doctor who was handcuffed and detained outside his home Friday as he was wearing a mask and preparing for a volunteer shift to test homeless people for COVID-19. "I want the officer held accountable. There's no way that you racially profile me and then you arrest me, detain me, during a pandemic, when you have no mask on, where hundreds of police officers throughout Miami-Dade County have tested positive," says Dr. Henderson, who is an internal medicine physician, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Miami and an organizer with Dream Defenders…
www.democracynow.org/2020/4/15/dr_armen_henderson_arrest_miami

COVID-19 Mideast Updates: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Israel
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-15
The confirmed cases of COVID-19 surpassed 76,000 in Iran on Wednesday as the slowdown in infections continued. Meanwhile, a team of Chinese medical experts arrived in Saudi Arabia to help fight the novel coronavirus. | RELATED: | Sub-Saharan Africa Won't Be Spared in Health, Economic Crisis: IMF | Iran announced 94 new deaths from the coronavirus, raising the total fatalities to 4,777, while the tally of confirmed cases surged to 76,389, up by 1,512 from a day ago. | The incr…
telesurenglish.net/news/COVID-19-Mideast-Updates-Iran-Saudi-Arabia-Turkey-Israel-20200415-0017.html

Sub-Saharan Africa Won't Be Spared in Health, Economic Crisis
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-15
Sub-Saharan African Countries are facing a health crisis and economic downturns with consequences that could last for years as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Wednesday, warning that no country would be spared. | RELATED: | Africa's COVID-19 Death Toll Hits 816, 15,249 Confirmed Cases | So far, more than 16,000 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded across the region, including North Africa. In the Sub Saharian part of the continent,…
telesurenglish.net/news/Sub-Saharan-Africa-Face-Unprecedented-Health-Economic-Crisis-IMF-20200415-0016.html

Africa Is Relying on its Own Forces in Fight Against Covid-19
Aminata Touré | commondreams.org | 2020-04-15
A scientific staff member works in a secure laboratory, researching the coronavirus, at the Pasteur Institute in Dakar on February 3, 2020. (Photo: Seyllou / AFP / Getty images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/senegal_africa_covid.png …
commondreams.org/views/2020/04/15/africa-relying-its-own-forces-fight-against-covid-19?cd-origin=rss

FAO scales up tech assistance to Iran on desert locust infestation
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-15
TEHRAN, Apr. 15 (MNA)

UNICEF Advocates for Child Care During COVID-19 Crisis
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-15
The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, warns of the need to protect children during the health emergency caused by COVID-19. | RELATED: | Africa's COVID-19 Death Toll Hits 816, 15,249 Confirmed Cases | According to the international agency, infants are not only vulnerable to infection, but also to the social and economic consequences of the pandemic. | UNICEF advocates for indirect protection of children through securing work and income for parents and legal guardians who su…
telesurenglish.net/news/unicef-advocates-for-childrens-care-during–covid19-development-20200415-0006.html

FAO scales up tech assistance to Iran on desert locust infestation
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-04-15
TEHRAN, Apr. 15 (MNA)

Covid-19 'avalanche' in Africa & India could lead to FOUR waves of virus hitting Europe & US, health expert says
rt.com | 2020-04-15
A WHO public health expert has warned that if the coronavirus is allowed to "march through" Sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian sub-continent unarrested, the rest of the world risks being hit by repeated bouts of Covid-19. | Professor Lawrence Gostin, director of the World Health Organization's Center on Public Health and Human Rights, told BBC Radio 4's Today program on Wednesday that we are "only as safe as the weakest link in the global chain" on tackling coronavirus. | If you've got Covid rages in other parts of the world, in this interconnected society we live in, it will come back to Europe and the United…
rt.com/news/485895-coronavirus-waves-europe-us-pandemic/

NY gov Cuomo mandates masks after offering New Yorkers as GUINEA PIGS for coronavirus vaccine
rt.com | 2020-04-15
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has volunteered his state as a "laboratory" for coronavirus vaccine testing as he contemplates reopening its economy. He has then ordered state residents to wear masks in public at all times. | "You want to use New York state as a laboratory? We are ready, willing and able," Cuomo gushed on Wednesday during his daily coronavirus press conference, addressing the Food and Drug Administration, which is conducting early-stage vaccine trials on a number of experimental coronavirus vaccine compounds. | . @NYGovCuomo says…
rt.com/usa/485922-cuomo-new-york-masks-vaccine/

'My child is not a guinea pig' petition gets thousands of signatures as Denmark re-opens schools amid Covid-19 pandemic
rt.com | 2020-04-15
Denmark has made the decision to reopen schools for younger children after a month-long lockdown, becoming the first country in Europe to relax coronavirus restrictions on education. | Schools have been given new guidelines around limiting the number of children in classrooms and rearranging the desks two meters apart from each other. The measure was welcomed by some parents. Caroline, a 38-year-old mother of two, told AFP that she feels "really good about the kids going back to school." | However, others are still worried that the easing of restrictions may be coming too soon. A petition titled 'My child is n…
rt.com/news/485897-denmark-coronavirus-reopen-schools/

Ugandan government touts malarial drug chloroquine as a COVID-19 cure
wsws.org | 2020-04-15
Uganda's government has taken a leaf from US President Donald Trump's playbook in promoting the untested drug as a potential lifesaver.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/04/15/ugan-a15.html

Why Did Our Permanent Emergency Government Fail to Face the Emergency?
Harry Blain | counterpunch.org | 2020-04-15
Between 1978 and 2018, American presidents declared 58 national emergencies. Their targets ranged from "Transactions with Terrorists Who Threaten to Disrupt the Middle East Peace Process" and "Transactions with Significant Narcotics Traffickers" to "the Anchorage and Movement of Vessels with Respect to Cuba" and "Persons Undermining Democratic Processes or Institutions in Zimbabwe." By the time…
counterpunch.org/2020/04/15/why-did-our-permanent-emergency-government-fail-to-face-the-emergency/

Black Doctor Who Tests Homeless for Coronavirus Handcuffed by Miami Police
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-04-15
We speak with Dr. Armen Henderson, an African-American doctor who was handcuffed and detained outside his home Friday as he was wearing a mask and preparing for a volunteer shift to test homeless people for COVID-19. "I want the officer held accountable. There's no way that you racially profile me and then you arrest me, detain me, during a pandemic, when you have no mask on, where hundreds of police officers throughout Miami-Dade County have tested positive," says Dr. Henderson, who is an interna…
truthout.org/video/black-doctor-who-tests-homeless-for-coronavirus-handcuffed-by-miami-police/

'Bigger than winning the war': WWII vet, aged 99, survives coronavirus in Brazil
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-15
World War Two veteran Ermando Piveta, aged 99, became the oldest Brazilian to recover from the coronavirus on Tuesday.Wearing an army cap and saluting from his wheelchair, Piveta left the Armed Forces Hospital in Brasilia to an ovation from medical staff and a soldier's trumpet homage."Winning this battle was for me bigger than winning the war," he said of his fight against an invisible enemy. "In war you kill or live. Here you have to fight to live," he added.Piveta was a second lieutenant in the Brazilian Army forces during World War Two and served in Africa.He tested positive for the coronavirus two weeks ago…
yenisafak.com/en/life/bigger-than-winning-the-war-wwii-vet-aged-99-survives-coronavirus-in-brazil-3516999

Kids aren't coronavirus 'guinea pigs': Danish mums rebel as schools reopen
yenisafak.com | 2020-04-15
Denmark eased its coronavirus lockdown on Wednesday by reopening schools and day care centres, but concerns they might become breeding grounds for a second wave of cases convinced thousands of parents to keep their children at home.The rate of new cases is falling, but the government's decision has led to a heated debate over how to balance the needs of the economy and the safety of the population – in this case its youngest citizens."I won't be sending my children off no matter what," said Sandra Andersen, the founder of a Facebook group called 'My kid is not going to be a Guinea Pig' that has more than 40,000 f…
yenisafak.com/en/world/kids-arent-coronavirus-guinea-pigs-danish-mums-rebel-as-schools-reopen-3517002

China to Launch Clinical Trials for Two COVID-19 Vaccines
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-14
China's health authorities approved human clinical trials of two experimental vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which causes the COVID-19 disease. | RELATED: | China Rejects US Accusation of 'Xenophobia' Against Africans | These are two "inactivated" vaccines consisting of microorganisms that have been killed through physical or chemical processes. | One of them was developed by the Wuhan Institute of Virology and Sinopharm. Their vaccine will be tested on 1,396 voluntee…
telesurenglish.net/news/China-to-Launch-Clinical-Trials-for-Two-COVID-19-Vaccines-20200414-0001.html

California's COVID-19 Cases Higher Than Reported: Official
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-14
There might be up to 25,000 cases of COVID-19 in Northern California's San Mateo County (SMC), far more than the three-digit cases that are officially confirmed, the county's health officer said in a statement on Monday. | RELATED: | China Rejects US Accusation of 'Xenophobia' Against Africans | Scott Morrow said that the data currently shared on the county's website is simply very limited as many characteristics of the coronavirus are unknown and the testing remains very constrain…
telesurenglish.net/news/Californias-COVID-19-Cases-Higher-Than-Reported-Official-20200414-0006.html

COVID-19: Growth forecast at -3 per cent, as IMF offers debt relief to most vulnerable nations in Africa, Asia, Middle East and Caribbean
news.un.org | 2020-04-14
Forecasting the "worst economic downturn since the Great Depression", the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday that growth for the year was likely to end up at minus three per cent, with a dramatic change evident since the last World Economic Outlook report in January.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/04/1061712

COVID-19: Major relief airlift will reach 'most vulnerable' African nations
news.un.org | 2020-04-14
The first of the UN's "Solidarity Flights" carrying urgently needed medical equipment to Africa, has arrived in Addis Ababa, agencies said on Tuesday.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/04/1061662

Africa's COVID-19 Death Toll Hits 816, 15,249 Confirmed Cases
telesurenglish.net | 2020-04-14
The death toll from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on the African continent reached 816 as the number of confirmed cases hit 15,249 across the continent as of Tuesday, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said. | RELATED: | US: African-Americans Are More Vulnerable to COVID-19 | The Africa CDC, a specialized agency of the 55-member African Union (AU) Commission, in its latest situation update issued on Tuesday also revealed that the number of confirmed positi…
telesurenglish.net/news/Africas-COVID-19-Death-Toll-Hits-816-15249-Confirmed-Cases-20200414-0021.html

United States: The virus is colour blind, humans are not
Susan Price | greenleft.org.au | 2020-04-14
Anti-racism Healthcare Malik MiahIssue 1261 United States COVID-19April 14, 2020The Coronavirus is colour blind. It strikes whites, Blacks, Latinos, indigenous people, Asians and rich, poor. So, why the hig…
greenleft.org.au/content/united-states-virus-colour-blind-humans-are-not

Wash Your Hands? Despite Pandemic, Thousands Still Have No Water in Detroit, a Coronavirus Hot Spot
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-13
Water shutoffs continue amid the coronavirus pandemic in Detroit, despite a moratorium and a program to help thousands of residents restore service last month. The lack of water access comes as nearly 1,500 people in Michigan have died from COVID-19, and 40% of those who have died are African-American, despite making up just 14% of the state's population. We speak with community pastor and activist Rev. Roslyn Bouier, who has been working with residents to restore their water.
www.democracynow.org/2020/4/13/detroit_michigan_water_shut_offs

"Capitalism is incapable of responding to a crisis of this kind"
Eds. | mronline.org | 2020-04-13
The lockdown in South Africa has been extended till the end of April. However, the government's execution of the lockdown, along with decades of under-investment in health, has left the country unprepared.
mronline.org/2020/04/13/capitalism-is-incapable-of-responding-to-a-crisis-of-this-kind/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=capitalism-is-incapable-of-responding-to-a-crisis-of-this-kind

Saudi Arabia Violates its Own Ceasefire As Yemen Announces First Cases of Coronavirus
Ahmed Abdulkareem | mintpressnews.com | 2020-04-10
The Saudi regime has engaged in a number of questionable activities since the global outbreak of COVID-19, including moving masses of African refugees deported from areas with coronavirus to the Yemeni border.
mintpressnews.com/saudi-arabia-violates-ceasefire-yemen-announces-first-cases-coronavirus/266547/

Fight against desert locust swarms goes on in East Africa despite coronavirus crisis measures
news.un.org | 2020-04-09
Sustained efforts to contain East Africa's worst invasion of desert locusts in decades are forging ahead, despite limits on the flow of personnel and equipment stemming from the global COVID-19 pandemic, the UN food agency said Friday.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/04/1061482

"A Systematic Issue of Disparity": Black People in Louisiana Account for 70% of COVID-19 Deaths
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-08
Louisiana faces one of the worst outbreaks of the coronavirus in the United States. New data shows black people account for 70% of all the state's coronavirus deaths, though they comprise just 32% of the state's population. Louisiana also has the highest incarceration rate in the country, and more than 65% of the people in its jails and prisons are black. At least 28 people are infected, and 22 corrections staff have tested positive. State corrections officials are sending infected prisoners to the Louisiana State Penitentiary

Albert Woodfox: COVID-19 Offers Public a "Small Window" into What Prisoners Face in Solitary Confinement
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-08
As millions shelter in place around the world, we speak with Albert Woodfox, who served the longest time in solitary confinement of any prisoner in the United States. Known as one of the Angola Three, along with Robert King and Herman Wallace, Woodfox was held in isolation for nearly 44 years at the Louisiana State Penitentiary, known as Angola. He was convicted of killing a guard in jail, but always maintained his innocence. He says he was targeted for co-founding the first Black Panther chapter in Angola. He was released in 2016 and is now 73 years old. His memoir is "Solitary: Unbroken by Four Decades in Solit…
www.democracynow.org/2020/4/8/albert_woodfox_solitary_confinement

If COVID-19 Doesn't Discriminate, Then Why Are Black People Dying at Higher Rates?
ReNika Moore | aclu.org | 2020-04-08
COVID-19 is ravaging many parts of the United States, but nowhere more than in Black communities. Early data from the Midwest and the South reveal that Black people are contracting and dying from the virus at far higher rates than whites. Louisiana just released data which shows that African Americans account for 70 percent of all deaths in the state. In Milwaukee…
aclu.org/news/racial-justice/if-covid-19-doesnt-discriminate-then-why-are-black-people-dying-at-higher-rates

Deaths of Inequality: AOC on Black and Latinx Communities at Epicenter of Epicenter of the Pandemic
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-04-07
As COVID-19 deaths spike in African-American and immigrant communities, almost a third of New York City's infections are in Queens, one of the most diverse places in the world, and many in the hardest-hit neighborhoods are undocumented and working-class. We speak with Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents the neighborhoods at the epicenter of the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, about how the Trump administration's response to the pandemic is causing "deaths of incompetence," "deaths of science denial" and "deaths of inequality."
www.democracynow.org/2020/4/7/aoc_coronavirus_queens_bronx