Saturday 29 February 2020

New top story on Hacker News: NASA images show China pollution clear amid slowdown

NASA images show China pollution clear amid slowdown
21 by rusty__ | 5 comments on Hacker News.


Mainland China reports 573 new coronavirus cases on Feb. 29

Mainland China reported 573 new confirmed coronavirus cases on Feb. 29, up from 427 the previous day and the highest daily increase in a week, the country's health authority said on Sunday.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2vjsr5X

Gatherings banned, travel restricted as coronavirus cases grow worldwide

Leaders in Europe, the Middle East and the Americas rolled out bans on big gatherings, and stricter travel restrictions as cases of the new coronavirus spread around the world.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/387uc3r

Slovak opposition party OLANO takes lead in election: partial results

Slovak opposition party Ordinary People (OLANO) took the lead in the EU country's parliamentary election, results from one third of voting districts showed on Sunday.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2vqB2DC

Greece confirms three new cases of coronavirus, brings total to seven

Greece has confirmed three new cases of coronavirus, the Health Ministry said on Saturday, bringing the total number of coronavirus infections in the country to seven.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/38dg48A

Clyburn says the Biden campaign needs ‘retooling.’


By BY THOMAS KAPLAN AND KATIE GLUECK from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/2Tuf4rg

The Islanders Are Saying Goodbye to Brooklyn


By BY ALLAN KREDA from NYT Sports https://ift.tt/399PJK8

At CPAC, Trump Takes Aim at Rivals


By BY ANNIE KARNI from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/2wkvvhX

Trump says getting rid of "bad" people made him successful

Trump says getting rid of "bad" people made him successfulPresident Donald Trump said Saturday that his “journey” in the nation's highest office would have been a failure had he not be able to rid the government of people he says are “bad.” Trump came into office railing against what he and his allies call the “deep state” — career government employees and political appointees held over from prior administrations — claiming it was out to undermine him. “We have such bad people and they're not people who love our country,” Trump told several thousand cheering and chanting supporters at the the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.




from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/39cmcPN

50 Years on – how Apollo 13's near disastrous mission is relevant today

When an oxygen tank blew during the 1970 Nasa moonshot, the successful rescue mission was thanks to Nasa organisation, not improvisation

Eighteen months ago, I was combing through the Apollo 11 mission logs, looking at the timelines and events for something unique that we might focus on to celebrate the 50th anniversary of humankind’s first landing on the moon. Last year, that idea became the BBC World Service podcast 13 Minutes to the Moon.

As the series drew to a close, it became clear that there was unfinished business. Some of the flight controllers who had been present for the Apollo 11 landing had also worked on another, arguably more dramatic, endeavour – the ill-fated flight of Apollo 13.

Continue reading...

from World news | The Guardian https://ift.tt/38avgU7

Has The EU-Turkey Refugee Deal Collapse?



DW: Will the EU-Turkey refugee deal collapse?

The EU is skeptical about rumors that Turkey may let more Syrian refugees into Europe, pointing out that the "refugee deal" is still in place. But just how dependent is the EU on Turkey?

Rumors that Turkey might open its borders and allow Syrian refugees to enter the European Union began swirling shortly after the latest deadly skirmish between Turkish and Syrian forces in Idlib province on Thursday.

Omer Celik, a spokesman for Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), said Turkey would no longer be able to keep refugees from entering Greece. Turkish media outlets ran reports claiming that busses full of refugees had been seen making their way to Turkey's borders with Greece and Bulgaria.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The EU-Turkey refugee deal is definitely "dead" .... Thousands Of Migrants Swarm The Greek And Bulgarian Border.

from War News Updates https://ift.tt/2TapD3V

U.S. Wants A Three-Way Arms Control Pact With Russia And China


DW: US seeks three-way arms control pact with Russia and China

Washington is pushing for talks with the Kremlin and Beijing on forming a pact. President Trump has already intimated he wants China to join the US and Russia in a fresh deal when the pair's current arrangement expires.

Missile launch in San Nicolas, United States (picture-alliance/dpa/Scott Howe/The Defense Department of the US)

The White House is trying to broker a three-way arms control pact with Russia and China, a senior administration official said Friday.

A proposed meeting between the three nations is expected to also include the leaders of Britain and France, the remaining countries that make up the so-called P5, the UN Security Council's five permanent members.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: It's not going to happen. China has made it very clear that they are not interested .... China Is Not Interested In Doing Any Nuclear Missile Deal (February 17, 2019).

from War News Updates https://ift.tt/32DrkKf

US-China military tensions remain high despite epidemic

The PLA Navy recently completed a 41-day live-fire drill in the Western Pacific, the longest and largest of its kind for two years. Photo: PLA Navy

SCMP: Coronavirus: US-China military tensions remain high despite epidemic

* Beijing responds to US freedom of navigation operations in East and South China seas by staging its largest live-fire naval exercise in two years
* But defence ministry says it will scale back military drills as PLA troops are deployed to help fight the deadly disease

China’s air force and navy have raised their combat-readiness level since the Lunar New Year
in response to increased freedom of navigation exercises by US forces in the East and South China seas, according to official media.

Pilots from the Eastern and Southern theatre commands have been forced to cancel their holidays and engaged in repeated patrol flights on the country’s defensive front line, PLA Daily reported.

The heightened activity comes despite the People’s Liberation Army (PLA)having deployed thousands of military detachments to support the efforts to combat the coronavirus outbreak in the central China city of Wuhan.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: Tensions between the U.S. and China are definitely there .... Chinese Warship Fired A Military Laser At A US Navy P-8 Surveillance Aircraft Last Week (February 28, 2020)

from War News Updates https://ift.tt/3cipEKI

Hundreds rally in US cities against anti-Muslim violence in Delhi

Indian Americans organise protests after violence in the Indian capital that was worst since 1984.

from Al Jazeera English https://ift.tt/2TrisTZ

Fox News Breaking News Alert

Fox News Breaking News Alert

Biden wins South Carolina Democratic primary, Fox News projects, in crucial boost to campaign after early losses

02/29/20 4:01 PM

South Carolina primary: Joe Biden projected to win

It comes as a major boost to the former vice-president's flagging presidential campaign.

from BBC News - World https://ift.tt/2PALoaR

Berlin International Film Festival: Iranian film about executions wins top prize

Director Mohammad Rasoulof is banned from leaving Iran and filmed There Is No Evil in secret.

from BBC News - World https://ift.tt/2Tdyt14

Afghan conflict: What will Taliban do after signing US deal?

A sense of cautious optimism is rising, but Afghanistan's political future is yet to be decided.

from BBC News - World https://ift.tt/32BUtFX

Biden Wins in South Carolina, Adding New Life to His Candidacy


By BY JONATHAN MARTIN AND ALEXANDER BURNS from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/2I7NCdQ

Joe Biden wins South Carolina primary with overwhelming support.


By BY NICK CORASANITI from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/2I5QPKK

After 12 hours, the polls in South Carolina have closed.


By BY LISA LERER from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/388KTeQ

A crowd waits for Warren in Houston: ‘I just love her energy.’


By BY MICHAEL HARDY from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/32ER890

Looking to Super Tuesday, Buttigieg campaigns in Nashville.


By Unknown Author from NYT U.S. https://ift.tt/32FTaWd

Friday 28 February 2020

Covid-19 Outbreak In Asia -- News Updates February 28, 2020



Time: A Silent Epidemic? Experts Fear the Coronavirus Is Spreading Undetected in Southeast Asia

As coronavirus cases continue to soar globally, in at least one region a steady façade of optimism persists. Southeast Asia’s foreign ministers have joined hands with China and declared their intention to “stay strong!”

Yet their hastily called meeting in secretive, socialist Laos last week suggests not so much resiliency as the need to shore up mutual support. Health experts are widely skeptical of the numbers reported by China’s neighbors, and believe the deadly infection is spreading undetected throughout much of Southeast Asia.

With infection clusters increasingly sprouting outside the mainland, where the virus originated, many fear these pockets—rooted out or not—are sustaining the outbreak and pushing the world toward a global pandemic.

Read more ....

Covid-19 Outbreak In Asia -- News Updates February 28, 2020

Coronavirus: 571 new cases in South Korea take total to 2,337; BTS cancels Seoul concert -- SCMP/Reuters
South Korea coronavirus cases top 2,300 as authorities ramp up testing -- UPI
New coronavirus cases in mainland China fall to lowest since January -- Reuters
Beijing ramps up crowd control measures on virus fears -- AFP
Virus slows China's major projects in Asia -- AFP
'No one cares': Locked-in Wuhan residents adapt to find food -- AFP
Coronavirus: China, Japan, South Korea supply chains under threat from ‘second wave’ of disruptions -- SCMP
Coronavirus: state of emergency declared on Japan’s Hokkaido -- SCMP
Coronavirus threat to Olympics: Organisers will announce next week if torch relay has to be scaled back amid fears Tokyo 2020 could be CANCELLED -- Daily Mail
Exclusive: Tokyo has no 'Plan B' for Games despite coronavirus -- Reuters
Coronavirus: Are Japan's school closures a political move to save the Olympics? -- DW
China and Japan's coronavirus cooperation helps offset sea dispute -- Reuters
Coronavirus in Pakistan: Mask-buying panic leading to shortages -- Al Jazeera

from War News Updates https://ift.tt/2Tp97Mr

Mexico’s Battle with Obesity

NEW DELHI, Feb 28 (IPS) - Paradoxically, when the number of people suffering from undernourishment or hunger has risen in the world, so, too, have those afflicted by overweight and obesity.

Latin America's second largest economy, Mexico, for instance, is currently battling one of the world's largest epidemics of obesity and its success is bound to be emulated by countries of the South.

The numbers involved are staggering. The director-general of the National Institute of Public Health, Dr Juan Rivera told the Financial Times that "seventy five percent of adults and 35 percent of children and adolescents are overweight or obese… The State has a duty to protect public health."

Read the full story, “Mexico’s Battle with Obesity”, on globalissues.org



from Global Issues News Headlines https://ift.tt/2VuNCML

Coronavirus outbreak 'getting bigger': All the latest updates

WHO warning comes after Nigeria records first case in sub-Saharan Africa, as number of cases worldwide surpass 83,000.

from Al Jazeera English https://ift.tt/2I8VfAw

US appeals court grants Trump bid to block McGahn testimony

Ruling represents a vindication of Trump directive for current, ex-officials to defy Congress requests on impeachment.

from Al Jazeera English https://ift.tt/3a6LBuq

Polanski wins Cesar Award for best director, prompting walkout protest

Roman Polanski scooped France's Cesar Award for best directing for his film "An Officer and a Spy" on Friday, prompting a walkout by several women in the audience in protest at honoring a man facing rape accusations.


from Reuters: Entertainment News https://ift.tt/2Vuz3sI
via IFTTT

Fox News Breaking News Alert

Fox News Breaking News Alert

President Trump holds a rally in North Charleston, S.C., 24 hours before the polls close in the state's Democratic primary. Watc

02/28/20 4:09 PM

Walkout as Polanksi wins 'best director' at Césars

The Polish-French director is wanted in the US for the statutory rape of a 13-year-old in the 1970s.

from BBC News - World https://ift.tt/2wikSfz

Latvia railway: Why I love living in an old train station

Milda Romanova's home is an old rail station, and at 88 she still loves all things trains.

from BBC News - World https://ift.tt/2VvjX6j

U.S. candidates, world leaders ignore Venezuela’s crisis. Shame on them! | Opinion

U.S. candidates, world leaders ignore Venezuela’s crisis. Shame on them! | OpinionWhile watching the last Democratic debate before Super Tuesday, I wondered why Venezuela’s humanitarian tragedy didn’t even come up in the discussion. The presidential hopefuls talked about Israel, Syria, North Korea and even Cuba’s 1960s education programs, but didn’t mention one of the world’s biggest crises.




from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://ift.tt/39azIn8

Exclusive: U.S. postpones summit with ASEAN leaders amid coronavirus fears - sources

The United States has decided to postpone a meeting with leaders of Southeast Asian countries it had planned to host on March 14 due to worries about the coronavirus outbreak, two U.S. officials familiar with the matter said on Friday.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2I1tn1k

U.S. to push production of protective gear for coronavirus; new case confirmed in California

The United States will invoke a federal defense law to boost production of masks, gloves, gowns and other items to protect against the new coronavirus, the Trump administration said, as a new case was confirmed in California on Friday.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/32zEQPj

Honeywell sees surge in demand for face masks in North America, China

Industrial conglomerate Honeywell International Inc said on Friday it was seeing a surge in demand for its protective face masks in North America, Europe, India and China, following the coronavirus outbreak.


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

Slovaks poised to oust ruling Smer party in election clouded by graft

Voters look poised to oust the center-left Smer party that has dominated Slovakia's political landscape for more than a decade in a national election on Saturday overshadowed by anger over high-level graft.


from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2weMp1A

Vance doubles down on false 'pet-eating' claims

The baseless claims targeting Haitian immigrants have led to several security threats in the town of Springfield, Ohio. from BBC News http...