Friday, May 1, 2020

Six In The Morning Friday 1 May 2020

In quest for vaccine, US makes 'big bet' on company with unproven technology

Updated 1026 GMT (1826 HKT) May 1, 2020


It almost felt like an episode of "Shark Tank."
One by one, vaccine developers at a White House roundtable convened by President Donald Trump in early March pitched their product as a viable solution to the coronavirus that was spreading globally and killing Americans.
John Shiver, the head of R&D for Sanofi Pasteur vaccines, said he could have a product ready for the clinic in a year -- perhaps a vaccine for the public in as "few as several years."
    Trump seemed uninterested.



    'You think we care about masks?': anger and poverty grip Lebanese city


    Tripoli, a hub of peaceful protest last October, is at the centre of a struggle to survive amid coranavirus

    In the heart of the city that used to drive Lebanon’s economy, workers were busy with a rare jolt of enterprise, bolting steel plates to the ruins of its scorched banks.
    By dusk on Thursday, all of Tripoli’s ransacked branches were encased in armour, shielding piles of smouldering ash and rubble, but coming far too late to protect what had been inside. Over two earlier, violent nights, rioters had looted what they could.
    Six months after a revolution demanding action from a corrupt ruling class, and with a global pandemic now thrown in, its people are returning to the streets in rage at an enfeebled state that has largely left them to fend for themselves as the middle class sinks into poverty. Tripoli, a hub of a nationwide peaceful uprising last October that electrified the country, is now at the centre of something more raw and desperate – an increasing struggle to survive.

    Coronavirus: World must prepare for second and third wave of Covid-19, WHO warns

    Europe remains ‘very much in grip’ of pandemic despite signs of passing peak

    Samuel Osborne @SamuelOsborne93


    Countries around the world must be prepared for a “second or third wave” of the coronavirus until a vaccine is available, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned.
    Europe remains “very much in the grip” of the pandemic, despite positive signs it was passing the peak, said Dr Hans Kluge, the head of the WHO in Europe.
    Covid-19 is not going away any time soon,” he added.

    Iran condemns German ban on Hezbollah, warns of consequences

    A day after Germany designated Hezbollah a terrorist organization, Iran has "strongly condemned" the move and threatened Germany with consequences. They accused Germany of pandering to the US and Israel.
    Iran slammed Germany's ban on the activities of Lebanon's Hezbollah on Friday. The Iranian foreign ministry warned that Germany would face the consequences of its decision to give in to the wishes of the US and Israel.
    German authorities designated Hezbollah a "Shiite terrorist organization” and banned its activity on German soil on Thursday. Police conducted four raids linked to the Islamist group.

    Covid-19 lockdowns temper May Day rallies worldwide

    Workers were forced to scale back May Day rallies around the world on Friday because of coronavirus lockdowns, although some pushed on with online events and others hit the streets in face masks.
    The traditional festival of the workers' movement usually attracts millions of people to loud and boisterous marches through the streets -- and occasional violent confrontations with police forces.
    This year the date carries extra significance after the COVID-19 outbreak sent the global economy into a historic tailspin and put unprecedented numbers of people out of work.

    Exclusive: Videos show huge medical equipment backlog in China

    Footage obtained by Al Jazeera shows trucks waiting and medical supplies piling up in warehouses at Shanghai airport.

    by


    Al Jazeera's Investigative Unit has obtained exclusive video revealing a huge backlog of goods at China's biggest export hub that is slowing the supply of medical equipment urgently needed to protect hundreds of thousands of health workers as they fight the global coronavirus pandemic.

    One video filmed on April 19 shows long queues of lorries loaded with cargo at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, China's busiest freight hub, waiting to unload at customs. Other videos reveal chaotic scenes at airport facilities with hundreds of boxes, including medical supplies, piling up in warehouses.




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