(2020-04-28). Egypt's president extends 3-year state of emergency by 3 months amid virus & security fears. rt.com 
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ordered a three-month renewal for the long-running state of emergency in the country on Tuesday, citing health and security concerns. Egypt has been under a state of emergency since April 2017, when twin church bombings claimed by an Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) affiliate group killed dozens of people. | The new extension comes as the government battles to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the Arab world's most populous country. | The Health Ministry has so far recorded 4,782 coronavirus cases among the population of 100 million. Of those, 337 have d…
(2020-04-28). 'Farce & new coup': Libya's presidential council condemns Haftar's power grab move. rt.com 
The Presidential Council of Libya's Government of National Accord has described as a "farce and a new coup" the statement by eastern-based military leader Khalifa Haftar that his Libyan National Army (LNA) was accepting a "popular mandate" to rule over the country. | Haftar's withdrawing from the 2015 Skhirat political agreement was not a surprise for the Tripoli-based government, the council said. It added that the commander's move was an attempt to disguise the LNA's "defeats and authoritarian plans of the field marshal," TASS reported on Tuesday. | Militias loyal to Haftar have been trying to capture the ca…
(2020-04-28). Libya's Haftar 'accepts people's will' to rule, declares UN-brokered unity government deal 'thing of the past'. rt.com 
Military leader Khalifa Haftar declared that his forces will take control of Libya, arguing the UN-brokered unity deal which created a rival government in Tripoli is dead and that the "people's will" gave him a mandate to rule. | "The General Command of the Armed Forces accepts the will of the people despite the burden of that trust, multiplicity of obligations, and the magnitude of responsibilities before God, our people, and conscience and history," Haftar said in a televised address on Monday, announcing that his Libyan National Army (LNA) will take control of the country. | Haftar's forces already control…
(2020-04-28). Russia in contact with Libya parties, says political means needed to resolve conflict. rt.com 
Moscow has reiterated that it is only possible to resolve the Libyan issue through political and diplomatic means, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday. | Russia "firmly believes that the only way to resolve the situation in Libya is through progress on the political and diplomatic track, as well as through political and diplomatic communication between the parties," the Kremlin spokesman said. Russia continues to maintain contact with all parties in Libya, Peskov noted. | Libyan National Army Commander Khalifa Haftar said on Monday that his forces had "a popular mandate" to rule the co…
(2020-04-28). A cautious reopening, but gatherings still off the cards: How Europe is lifting its lockdown. rt.com 
Across Europe, leaders have made tentative steps toward easing their countries' coronavirus lockdowns. However, a return to total normality has been all but written off for the year. | The Austrian government announced on Tuesday that the spread of the coronavirus has slowed to a point where restrictions can now be lifted. Health Minister Rudolf Anschober said that Austrians may freely leave their homes from May 1, with public gatherings to follow in the near future. Though social distancing rules will still apply, businesses like hairdressers will reopen, followed two weeks later by cafes and restaurants, and…
(2020-04-28). The U.S. Wants to "Purchase" Greenland from Denmark. globalresearch.ca The US' plan to leverage economic aid to Greenland for strategic ends is exactly the same thing that it accuses China of doing in Africa, suggesting that its infowar against Beijing's Belt & Road Initiative is driven more by jealousy …
(2020-04-28). Iranian, South African Presidents discuss US sanctions, coronavirus on phone. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 28 (MNA) — In a phone conversation on Tuesday, the Presidents of Iran and South Africa emphasized the development and deepening of relations, especially trade and economic relations, between the two countries, as well as sharing experiences and information on the fight against coronavirus.
(2020-04-28). Protests in Somalia after police killing during pandemic lockdown. wsws.org The protests reflect a broader anger towards the brutal methods utilized by the security forces during the curfew…
(2020-04-27). A Soft Power Ploy? Cuba Continues to Aid the Poorest and Least Influential Nations. mintpressnews.com As the coronavirus pandemic grows worse in many countries, Cuba has answered an urgent South African request for aid, sending 217 medical personnel to the country.
(2020-04-27). Cuba's Covid-19 Medical Brigades Are Not Medical Diplomacy: They Are International Solidarity at Its Finest. dissidentvoice.org 
Cuban Medical Brigade going to Italy (Photo credit: Ismael Francisco Gonzalez) Today the latest medical brigade from Cuba's Henry Reeves contingent arrived in South Africa to join the front lines with those saving lives in the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic. After a 14 day quarantine the 216 member group, made up of family physicians, …
(2020-04-27). What Does Post-COVID19 China Look Like? Mutual US-China Mistrust is the "New Normal" globalresearch.ca Beijing is not back to normal but there is an air of normality. The Beijing Subway has 23 lines but only one runs on a north-south axis. This is Line 5, the busiest. In February and March its carriages were …
(2020-04-27). U.S. Military Sheds Some Light on Civilian Casualties From Shadowy War in Somalia. commondreams.org ______________________________…
(2020-04-27). Trump and Biden Trade Hit Pieces: Distinctions without a Difference. mintpressnews.com This season's sequel to the "Game of Thrones" features reality TV star and the current occupant of the Oval Office versus the former Senator from The narrower the distinctions between Democrats and Republicans, the more vociferous they get in inflating those distinctions as if a distinction were really a difference. As liberation president of Tanzania Julius Nyerere famously observed,…
(2020-04-26). Cuban Doctors Head to South Africa to Help Fight COVID-19. telesurenglish.net A new Cuban medical brigade is scheduled to arrive in South Africa on Sunday to join another group of Cuban colleagues, who are already working in the African country to reinforce the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. | RELATED: | In the framework of the solidarity cooperation offered by the island at the international level, the 24 specialized medical brigade of the Cuban internationalist contingent Henry Reeve, responded t…
(2020-04-26). Former Jamaican Prime Minister Applauds Cuba's Generosity. telesurenglish.net The former Prime Minister of Jamaica Percival James Patterson acknowledged Cuba's international assistance in tackling the global COVID-19 pandemic, he said in a statement issued last Wednesday by the PJ Patterson Center for Africa-Caribbean Policy Advocacy of the University of the West Indies (UWI). | RELATED: | "Former Prime Minister Patterson applauds the generosity of the government and people of Cuba by sending hundred…
(2020-04-25). Liberia: Ebola contact tracing lessons inform COVID-19 response. news.un.org Lessons learned during the Ebola outbreak in Liberia six years ago are helping the West African country to confront the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) which is working alongside the World Health Organization (WHO) on surveillance and the coordination of contact tracing.
(2020-04-24). They Were Willing to Make the Ultimate Sacrifice for the U.S., but Trump Won't Let Them Become Americans. aclu.org 
Ange Samma, a 22-year-old green card holder from Burkina Faso, came to the United States seven years ago, when he was still a teenager. After studying electrical engineering at community college, he decided to enlist in the U.S. Army in 2018. He wanted to give back to his adopted country and also hoped joining the military would help him achieve his goal of becoming an electrical engineer. , , Ange currently serves on active duty as a soldier in South Korea. But despite serving this country on a U.S. military base in a foreign country, he still hasn't been able to obtain citizenship through his military servic…
(2020-04-23). Protect civilians in the Sahel and Lake Chad regions, urges UN refugee agency. news.un.org An upsurge in military action against armed groups in West Africa's vast Sahel and Lake Chad regions has prompted the United Nations refugee agency to call on all warring parties to protect people caught up in the violence.
(2020-04-23). Intensifying shelling and COVID-19 pandemic creates 'perfect storm' in Libya. news.un.org In Libya, ongoing heavy fighting has raised concerns yet further, about the likely devastating impact of the new coronavirus on people there, particularly those repeatedly forced to flee violence.
(2020-04-22). "Frightening Moment": On Earth Day, Kumi Naidoo on Africa's Twin Pandemics of Coronavirus & Hunger. democracynow.org 
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 — that was before the coronavirus hit," says lifel…
(2020-04-22). Economic impact of coronavirus threatens hard-won progress across Africa's Great Lakes region. news.un.org Sweeping preventative measures seem to be curbing the spread of COVID-19 in the Great Lakes region of Africa, but the economic impact of the global pandemic threatens hard-won gains made along the long road back to peace and stability, the Secretary-General's Special Envoy for the region said on Wednesday.
(2020-04-28). Netanyahu Is Back Yet Again. thealtworld.com Israel will become much bigger | Rahm Emanuel, up until recently the mayor of Chicago and before that a top advisor to the president in the Bill Clinton and Barack Obama White Houses and still earlier a volunteer in the Israeli Army, famously once commented that a good crisis should never be allowed to go to waste. He meant, of course, that a crisis can be exploited to provide cover for other shenanigans involving politicians. It was an observation that was particularly true when one was working for a sexual predator like Bill, who once attacked a "terrorist" pharmaceutical factory in Sudan to divert attention aw…
(2020-04-24). UN 'fully mobilized' to support the Sudanese people, Security Council hears. news.un.org The "exceptional circumstances" of the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted the peace process in Sudan as well as the drawing down of the United Nations mission there, the head of UN peacekeeping updated the Security Council on Friday.
(2020-04-28). Black Oakland Demands in Light of COVID-19 and Rates of Black Death. indybay.org Across the country, Black People are being infected and dying at disportionate rates from COVID-19. In order to respond effectively to the needs of the Black community our elected officials, health experts, advocates and organizers must take a look at the ways in which the descendants of slaves, Black, African and African-Americans are most impacted by this virus through a racial and class lens.
(2020-04-28). Paranoia and Hybris Syndrome in Donald Trump. globalresearch.ca Among the "losers of globalization" in the US, in addition to African-Americans and Latinos, indebted university students and white adults over 45 years of age without university studies and with jobs with low added value appear for the first time, …
(2020-04-28). Russia disapproves of Haftar's power grab in Libya: Lavrov. yenisafak.com "I would not talk here about any leverage that Russia has," Lavrov said. "We have contact with all the actors in the Libyan conflict, without exception."The Kremlin earlier on Tuesday said Russia remained committed to seeking a resolution to the conflict through politics and diplomacy.
(2020-04-28). Russian FM Sergei Lavrov Holds Presser After BRICS Ministerial Meeting – Video. sputniknews.com The foreign ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) held an extraordinary meeting earlier on Tuesday in the format of a video conference to discuss ways to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
(2020-04-28). Russian FM Sergei Lavrov Takes Part in BRICS Ministerial Meeting Via Videoconference – Video. sputniknews.com The foreign ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) hold an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday via video conference to discuss ways to combat the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
(2020-04-28). Palaeontologists Detail Secrets of Earth's 'Most Dangerous Place Ever'. sputniknews.com A fossil-rich deposit near the Moroccan-Algerian border dating back to the Late Cretaceous period has been revealed to have been a place "where a human time-traveller would not last very long," say researchers, citing a range of uniquely excavated items.
(2020-04-28). Giulietto Chiesa in prima linea fino all'ultimo. globalresearch.ca Giulietto Chiesa è morto poche ore dopo aver concluso, nel 75 ∞ Anniversario della Liberazione e della fine della Seconda guerra mondiale, il Convegno internazionale del 25 Aprile ´Liberiamoci dal virus della guerra ª. Un convegno in diretta streaming, organizzato dal Comitato …
(2020-04-21). Juan González: "Make No Mistake: This Country Is Edging Closer to Neo-Fascist Authoritarianism" democracynow.org 
We get an update from Democracy Now! co-host Juan González about his mother and wife, who were infected with COVID-19, and discuss how right-wing Trump supporters are brandishing automatic weapons at protests to demand an end to coronavirus shutdowns and are being egged on by the president. "We should make no mistake, that this country is edging closer and closer to neo-fascist authoritarianism," says González, expressing concern these actions will become normalized in the lead-up to a bitter national election in November.
(2020-04-21). Boosting Rwanda's Health Workforce. jamanetwork.com Rwanda's physician specialist workforce tripled and the ranks of nurses and midwives grew substantially as a result of the country's Human Resources for Health (HRH) Program, according to an evaluation by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.
(2020-04-20). Handcuffed: Black Miami Doctor Who Works with Homeless Says He Was Racially Profiled by Police. democracynow.org 
We continue our conversation with Dr. Armen Henderson, an African-American doctor in Miami who was handcuffed outside his home while preparing for a volunteer shift to help protect homeless people from the spread of COVID-19. The encounter has sparked widespread outrage, and Miami's police chief has now tested positive for COVID-19 and is in self-isolation. Dr Henderson has taken a test himself and is waiting for results — and accountability.