Cruise firm seeks new virus test for passenger from ship in Cambodia

More tests are needed to confirm that an American passenger from a cruise ship docked in Cambodia has the new coronavirus after she tested positive in Malaysia, the MS Westerdam's operator said on Sunday.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/3bJmvDl

Angry protests in Mexico after woman's gruesome killing

Angry demonstrations broke out in Mexico City on Friday as hundreds of women protested the gruesome slaying and mutilation of a young woman, a case that has come to personify outrage over the rising incidence of gender-related killings, or femicides. In the morning, dozens of protesters spray-painted slogans such as “We won't be silenced” on the facade and doorway of the capital's National Palace as President Andrés Manuel López Obrador was holding his daily news conference inside. Some spray-painted the plastic shields of riot officers as the crowd chanted “Not one more murdered!” and “Justice!” Police unleashed pepper spray.

The Latest: Some who back Sanders more confident this time

Some Nevada Democrats who made Bernie Sanders their first choice in the state's early caucus voting say they think he has a better chance of being elected president now than he did in 2016. Solano Kline of Reno says she supported Sanders last time too, but didn't think he could win so she opted for Hillary Clinton because she was more mainstream. Kline says the whole political climate has changed since then and Sanders vs. Donald Trump would be viewed more as good vs. evil.

Coronavirus quarantine: US to evacuate nearly 400 Americans on board cruise ship in Japan

The U.S. will evacuate the American passengers on board Princess Cruises' Diamond Princess, the U.S. Embassy in Japan announced early Saturday.

Former employee says he heard Bloomberg ask a female co-worker if she was going to 'kill it' after announcing her pregnancy

"Mike came out and I remember he said, 'Are you going to kill it?' And that stopped everything. And I couldn't believe it," the former employee said.

McCabe, an ex-FBI official targeted by Trump, not charged

Federal prosecutors have declined to charge former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, closing an investigation into whether the longtime target of President Donald Trump's ire lied to federal officials about his involvement in a news media disclosure, McCabe's legal team said. The decision, coming at the end of a tumultuous week between the Justice Department and the White House, is likely to further agitate a president who has loudly complained that federal prosecutors have pursued cases against his allies but not against his perceived political enemies.

U.S. Navy warship seizes alleged Iranian weapons

A U.S. Navy warship seized weapons believed to be of Iranian "design and manufacture," including 150 anti-tank guided missiles and three Iranian surface-to-air missiles, the American military said on Thursday.

A Hunt for Clues in Hawaii After a Tourist Couple Falls Ill With Coronavirus

By BY LORIN ELENI GILL AND NICHOLAS BOGEL-BURROUGHS from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/31ZuesD

Diamond Princess cruise ship has 67 passengers who have tested positive for coronavirus onboard, Japan's Health Minister announced

This new number, announced by Japanese Health Minister Katsunobu Kato's on Saturday, has brought the total amount of diagnosed passengers up to 286.

North Korea's Kim makes first public appearance in 22 days amid virus outbreak

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance in 22 days amid an outbreak of coronavirus, state media reported on Saturday, to visit a national mausoleum and mark the anniversary of the late leader Kim Jong Il's birth. Kim Jong Un paid tribute to the statue of former leader Kim at Pyongyang's Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, his first public appearance since he attended Lunar New Year celebrations on Jan. 25, state media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

Experts weigh in on how coronavirus may, or may not, run rampant in US in coming months

The coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19, has infected more than 60,000, killed over 1,300 and terrified millions. In the United States, residents wait with bated breath as new cases of infected Americans arise. Also worth noting is that more than 7,000 patients diagnosed with the virus have recovered, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.On Thursday, the 15th U.S. case of coronavirus was confirmed by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) after a patient returned from China to Texas earlier this week."The patient is among a group of people under a federal quarantine order at JBSA-Lackland in Texas because of their recent return to the U.S. on a State Department-chartered flight that arrived on February 7, 2020," the CDC wrote in a press release. Flower shop owner Iris Leung wears her protective face mask as she delivers flowers with masks to customers on Valentine's Day in Hong Kong, Friday, Feb. 14, 2020. COVID-19 viral illness has sickened tens of thousands of people in China since December. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu) Experts such as Elizabeth McGowan, however, have reason to believe the outbreak that has inflicted so many in Mainland China won't strike with the same impacts in the U.S.McGowan, who serves as director of Penn State University's Center of Infectious Disease Dynamics, said the size of cities where infections are confirmed and quarantine efforts will determine the stateside spread."I think in the U.S. it will be about locality," McGowan told AccuWeather in an interview. "I don't think it would be about culture or social behavior. I think it's going to be about whether it comes into smaller communities or bigger communities," she continued."Wuhan is a very large city [in China], with over 11 million people, so anytime you have large amounts of people in shared space you just have [a] greater risk for a greater sized outbreak. I think more than cultural differences and our behaviors between countries, it will be about where does it end up and whether we are able to successfully isolate those individuals."Two known cases of person-to-person transmission have been recorded in the U.S. so far -- one in California and one in Illinois, according to CNN.Experts have continually stressed the importance of proper preventative practices this flu season, particularly with the threat of COVID-19. McGowan, however, pushed the importance of using proper products that ensure the best protection. An employee wearing a protective face mask waits for customers at a shop in Hong Kong, Friday, Feb. 14, 2020. COVID-19 viral illness has sickened tens of thousands of people in China since December. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu) "We should be washing our hands with soap and doing it effectively. If you can not use soap, you can use those hand gel, alcohol-based disinfectants," she advised. "Those need to have a percentage of alcohol that's 60 percent or greater, so you need to be careful to make sure you get the right ones, check the label, and you need to make sure you rub in for 20 seconds or so before they're effective."Along with covering mouths and staying away from people while sick, McGowan added that it's important for people who feel any symptoms coming on to stay home. Hong Kong University professor John Nicholls recently stressed similar preventative measures in email exchanges with AccuWeather."​Apart from hand washing (soap is just as good as those alcohol gels) and masks, an important aspect is social distancing -- if people have symptoms stay away from other people," he said in an email on Feb. 13. "If you check the local Hong Kong media today, this was not followed by a guy who was ill but still went to work and subsequently appeared to infect other people."In a leaked private conference call with investment bankers last week, Nicholls expanded on those beliefs and described the different sanitary standards practiced in different regions. People wear protective face masks on a street in the rain in Hong Kong, Friday, Feb. 14, 2020. COVID-19 viral illness has sickened tens of thousands of people in China since December. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu) "With SARS, once it was discovered that the virus was spread through the fecal-oral route, there was much less emphasis on the masks and far more emphasis on disinfection and washing hands," he said. "Hong Kong has far more cleanliness [than China] and they are very aware of social hygiene and other countries will be more aware of the social hygiene [than China]. So, in those countries, you should see less outbreaks and spreading. A couple days ago the fecal-oral route of transmission was confirmed in Shenzhen ... But in other countries the sanitation systems tends to [be] closed. My personal view is that this will be a bad cold and it will all be over by May."Nicholls seemed to soften on his certainty that COVID-19 would be nullified by May in subsequent emails to AccuWeather, but McGowan expressed similar sentiments about the effect warming weather would have on the virus and the impact it would have in countries such as the U.S.CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP"Coronaviruses are a lot like flu and cold viruses, they're transmitted in respiratory droplets when people cough and sneeze," she said. "What that means is that for their transmission to work they have to hang in the air often for enough time before they can be inhaled into someone's lungs, and we know that weather affects that. The reason cold viruses and flu viruses like coronavirus can have seasonality is because they hang in the air longer when conditions are dry and cold."Conversely, in warmer spring and summer months, McGowan explained that higher levels of humidity cause those droplets to drop to the ground quicker, lessening the capacity for viruses to spread since the droplets spend less time in the environment. Customers wearing protective face masks looks at snacks at a shop in Hong Kong, Friday, Feb. 14, 2020. COVID-19 viral illness has sickened tens of thousands of people in China since December. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu) In major countries located in the Southern Hemisphere, such as Australia and New Zealand, COVID-19 could become a bigger issue in the future as major populations enter the winter months. There, McGowan said, the opposite impact on spread could occur in the coming months.One factor that could bear watching in Northern Hemisphere areas, where spring is a little more than one month away, would be if temperatures and humidity don't rise as high as some experts may think. Strange and unexpected weather factors like that could cause the virus to further mutate, although McGowan added that communities that have already been stricken by the virus are much less likely to be impacted again."We have some coronaviruses that have just become common cold viruses and they sort of continue to circulate in human populations," McGowan said. "So, there's a possibility that that could happen with this sort of virus. These viruses are always evolving and changing all the time, so that's yet to be seen. For areas where there has been a lot of infection, that virus is unlikely to reinvade that community."Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.

Trump to send border agents to "sanctuary" cities to help ICE

The move marks yet another escalation in the Trump administration's feud with cities that limit their cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows Sanders's strength going head-to-head with rivals

A new Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows that Sen. Bernie Sanders would defeat each of the other Democratic presidential candidates in a one-on-one race — in many instances by double-digit margins.

Virginia teen accused of killing mother, brother arrested

North Korea's Kim makes first public appearance in 22 days amid virus outbreak

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance in 22 days amid an outbreak of coronavirus, state media reported on Saturday, to visit a national mausoleum and mark the anniversary of the late leader Kim Jong Il's birth.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/39DV3Fn

UK post-Brexit rules to 'turn off tap' of low-skilled foreign labor

Britain will "turn off the tap" of foreign, low-skilled labor and require all skilled workers wishing to come to the country to have a job offer and meet salary and language requirements as it sets post-Brexit rules from next year.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2SIsZd6

Trump Administration Considering Halting Sales of Aircraft Parts to China

By BY ANA SWANSON AND STEVE LOHR from NYT Business https://ift.tt/2URt8O5

The US military has set up 15 coronavirus quarantine camps on its bases, and 600 citizens are still isolated there

At least 600 US citizens who were evacuated from Wuhan, China, are still in federal quarantine on US military bases.

Swarms of up to 80 Million Locusts Decimating Crops In East Africa, Threatening Food Security For 13 Million People

The United Nations (UN) has called on the international community to provide nearly $76 million to finance aerial spraying of pesticides in East Africa, where…

Bloomberg Tells Audience at Houston Rally He ‘Deeply Regrets’ Stop and Frisk

Mike Bloomberg apologized Thursday at a campaign rally in Houston for his controversial stop-and-frisk policy which he promoted as New York city mayor, telling the predominantly black crowd that he “deeply regrets” the legacy and that he “should have acted sooner and faster to stop it.”“I am committed to using the power of the presidency to right the wrongs of institutional racism,” Bloomberg told the crowd at Houston’s Buffalo Soldiers National Museum, before then pivoting to promote his “Mike for Black America” plan, which is aimed at addressing economic inequality.Bloomberg was joined on stage by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, as well as other black mayors who had endorsed him recently. A Quinnipiac University national poll released Monday showed that Bloomberg had gained 14 points among African Americans in a single month.Turner told the Houston Chronicle that while he saw Bloomberg’s record with stop and frisk as “insensitive” and “quite frankly wrong,” his “whole record” pushed him to endorse Bloomberg.“I think the sign of any good leader is recognizing the mistakes and then putting forth the path to go forward,” Turner said.Several clips of Bloomberg discussing and defending the policy, which disproportionally affected minority communities, emerged earlier this week. During a 2015 speech at the Aspen Institute, Bloomberg argued that maintaining a heavy and proactive police presence in minority neighborhoods was necessary to curb violent crime.“So one of the unintended consequences is people say, ‘Oh my God, you are arresting kids for marijuana that are all minorities.’ Yes, that’s true. Why? Because we put all the cops in minority neighborhoods,” Bloomberg said. “Yes, that’s true. Why do we do it? Because that’s where all the crime is. And the way you get the guns out of the kids’ hands is to throw them up against the wall and frisk them.”The former mayor apologized for the policy after beginning his campaign last November, calling it “overzealous,” but claimed that “nobody asked me about it until I started running for president.”

Biden calls on Sanders to take accountability for supporters' threats

The message comes after the powerful Culinary Workers Union said supporters of the Vermont senator had “viciously attacked” its members.

Angry protests in Mexico after woman's gruesome killing

Angry demonstrations broke out in Mexico City on Friday as hundreds of women protested the gruesome slaying and mutilation of a young woman, a case that has come to personify outrage over the rising incidence of gender-related killings, or femicides. In the morning, dozens of protesters spray-painted slogans such as “We won't be silenced” on the facade and doorway of the capital's National Palace as President Andrés Manuel López Obrador was holding his daily news conference inside. Some spray-painted the plastic shields of riot officers as the crowd chanted “Not one more murdered!” and “Justice!” Police unleashed pepper spray.

Trump defends China's alleged cover-up of coronavirus victims: 'You don't want the world to go crazy'

Donald Trump has launched an extraordinary defence of China’s alleged attempts to cover-up the extent of the spread of coronavirus.The US president, who has claimed without evidence the virus will likely “go away” by April, said Beijing has handled the epidemic “very professionally”, despite accusations the country had attempted to suppress information about the crisis.

Trump could face fresh impeachment over Roger Stone intervention, leading House Democrat suggests

Eric Swalwell says impeaching Donald Trump for his potential interference in Roger Stone's sentencing is not "off the table" as congressional Democrats prepare to hear from administration officials about the apparent "erosion of independence" inside the Department of Justice.The California Congressman and member of the House Intelligence and Judiciary committees told CNN that members of Congress "don't wake up in the morning wanting to impeach him" though the president has been "learning the wrong lessons" from his acquittal by the Senate, ​even after Republican allies admitted the president's wrongdoing following his impeachment in the House on charges of abuse of power and obstruction in his dealings with Ukraine and subsequent congressional investigation.

Who is Mexico's president? Ummm... say Democratic candidates

He is the president of a top US trading and security partner but two of the Democratic candidates for the White House couldn't name the leader of Mexico. Asked in a Nevada election forum Thursday held by the Telemundo channel and the League of United Latin American Citizens, neither Amy Klobuchar nor Tom Steyer could recall the name of the leader of America's immediate neighbor to the south: Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. "I forgot," said billionaire Steyer, when asked if he could name Mexico's president.

'There will be dad and mum': Putin rules out Russia legalizing gay marriage

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday Russia would not legalize gay marriage as long as he was in the Kremlin. During his two decades in power, Putin has closely aligned himself with the Orthodox Church and sought to distance Russia from liberal Western values, including attitudes toward homosexuality and gender fluidity.

China's Hubei province enacts 'wartime' measures as coronavirus count rises to 16,427

Coronavirus is continuing to spread throughout China and especially in the epicenter Hubei province, the World Health Organization said in a Friday update briefing on COVID-19.There are 47,505 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 throughout China with 1,381 deaths reported from the pneumonia-like illness it causes, including 121 deaths reported in the past day. Six of those who died were health care workers — "a critical piece of information" as WHO continues to investigate why even rigorous medical guidelines haven't stopped the spread, WHO reported Friday.A total of 1,716 health care workers in China have contracted COVID-19 despite WHO's guidelines, so this weekend, a team of 12 international and WHO experts will arrive in China to meet with local medical professionals for a "joint mission." The experts will particularly look at disease transmission and response measures to see how processes for health care workers, who "are working with virtually no sleep in difficult conditions," can be improved, WHO said.Meanwhile, Hubei, home to the epicenter city of Wuhan, is "enacting 'wartime' measures" as the number of confirmed cases in the province has climbed to 16,427. The measures include blocking people from going outside, "sealing off residential complexes and allowing only essential vehicles on the roads," The Washington Post reports. The virus has kicked off an "economic fallout" throughout China, with flower sales reportedly falling as much as 95 percent this Valentine's Day, the Post continues.More stories from theweek.com 7 brutally funny cartoons about the Democratic primary fight Bloomberg vs. Trump would be a clash of oligarchs R. Kelly hit with new allegation of sexual abuse of a minor in Chicago

Amid coronavirus fears, a second wave of flu hits US kids

A second wave of flu is hitting the U.S., turning this into one of the nastiest seasons for children in a decade. The number of child deaths and the hospitalization rate for youngsters are the highest seen at this point in any season since the severe flu outbreak of 2009-10, health officials said Friday. Experts say it is potentially a bad time for an extended flu season, given concerns about the new coronavirus out of China, which can cause symptoms that can be difficult to distinguish from flu without testing.

Rep. Collins Warns Dems are Using Stone Sentencing Intervention to Continue Impeachment Push

Representative Doug Collins (R., Ga.) cautioned on Wednesday that Democrats are leveraging the Justice Department's involvement in the Roger Stone case as a basis to continue their impeachment efforts against President Trump, adding that such efforts are "crazy."After President Trump complained Tuesday on Twitter that prosecutors' seven-to-nine-year sentencing recommendation constituted a “horrible and very unfair situation,” his Justice Department submitted a revised filing stating that the lengthy sentence “could be considered excessive and unwarranted.”Stone was convicted of lying to Congress, witness tampering and obstructing the House’s investigation into the Trump campaign’s connections to Russia. All four of the prosecutors who recommended Stone’s seven-to-nine year sentence either resigned or quit the case after the DOJ weighed in."Yes," Collins responded when asked by Fox News host Laura Ingraham whether Democrats are setting the Stone kerfuffle up as another basis for impeachment.Watch the latest video at foxnews.comThe Georgia Republican pointed to what he called the "hysterics" of House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler and Representative Eric Swalwell in response the DOJ's involvement in the case."This is just crazy," said Collins, who is the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee. "There's nothing happening here except [Attorney General] Bill Barr, who is the adult in the room, saying look, we got a problem here. This is nothing but the deep state lashing out again.""Barr had this information beforehand. He was not influenced by this. He had already begun to look at this," the Georgia Republican added.Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell suggested this week that Democrats could impeach the president over his DOJ's attempts to get Stone's sentence reduced, saying Democrats will not let Trump "torch this democracy.""This constant investigation, this constant demeaning of him, this constant trying to smear him, is only one reason," Collins said. "They have a clown car bunch of candidates for president. They're not going to win.""It's time for members of Congress in the House and the Senate to stand up on the Republican side and say, 'Enough of this crap out of the Democrats,'" Collins said, adding a call for Republicans to "share the message of conservatism that actually matters to all Americans."

Beijing quarantines returning residents as China struggles to pick up economy

People returning to the Chinese capital Beijing from extended holidays on Friday were ordered to undergo a 14-day self-quarantine to help prevent spread of the new coronavirus, as hard-hit Hubei province reported more than 2,400 new cases.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/37yE3ix

China reports 143 new deaths from coronavirus on mainland on Feb. 14

The death toll from a coronavirus outbreak in mainland China had reached 1,523 as of the end of Friday, up by 143 from the previous day, the country's National Health Commission said on Saturday morning.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2SLdpNR

Fake flyers and face-mask fear: California fights coronavirus discrimination

A flyer in Los Angeles' Carson area, with a fake seal of the World Health Organization, tells residents to avoid Asian-American businesses because of a coronavirus outbreak. A Los Angeles middle schooler is beaten and hospitalized after students say he is as an Asian-American with coronavirus.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2Hk3ut9

China's Hubei province reports 139 new coronavirus deaths on Feb. 14

The number of new deaths in China's central Hubei province from the coronavirus outbreak rose by 139 as of Friday, the province's health commission said on its website on Saturday.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2OUZweV