Eighteen Republican attorneys general press Congress to hold hearings on China’s coronavirus ‘deceit’
More than a dozen Republican attorneys general called on Congress to conduct hearings about China’s “deceit” during the coronavirus outbreak.
coronavirus
Senate to reconsider expired surveillance tools
The U.S. Senate will make a renewed attempt this week to extend parts of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Monday, two months after the divisive government surveillance tools expired.
Italian Aid Worker Returns Home After 18 Months In Captivity
A young Italian woman arrived in Italy after 18 long months as a hostage in eastern Africa, where she had been an aid worker. Silvia Romano, 24, returned from Somalia late Sunday to a homeland still suffering from the coronavirus pandemic that authorities claim killed more than 30,000 Italians and devastated the economy.
Britain’s Johnson Warns Anxious Nation Most Lockdown Measures Remain
Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned Sunday that most coronavirus lockdown measures would remain until at least June 1, and he announced a “conditional plan” for reopening British society.
Coronavirus Overshadows Europe’s 75th Anniversary of War Liberation
Leaders of Europe attended subdued ceremonies over the weekend to mark the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe while facing a perceived new war against an invisible enemy, the coronavirus.
Coronavirus Still Spreading From China to White House
Nations on Monday struggled to balance public and economic health amid mounting pressure to reopen economies despite an uptick in coronavirus cases ranging from China to even the White House.
Turkey’s Erdogan calls to ‘revitalize’ relationship with EU amid coronavirus pandemic
Turkey has revived its bid for membership in the European Union (EU), calling to ‘revitalize’ their relationship and citing the coronavirus pandemic as a clear demonstration of the need for unity.
White House: US Jobless Rate Could Hit 25% Amid COVID-19
The official U.S. unemployment rate linked to the coronavirus pandemic is already at 14.7%, but top White House officials said Sunday they expect it could reach 25% before the world’s biggest economy begins to improve.
Pompeo to discuss coronavirus, Iran with Netanyahu and Gantz
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, is slated to visit Israel on Wednesday, the State Department officially announced on Friday.
China ramping up COVID-19 disinformation campaign on Twitter, State Dept. says
China’s Communist Party and government are stepping up the use of Twitter to spread disinformation that Wuhan was not the origin of the coronavirus outbreak and that China is helping the world recover, the State Department said.
World Red Cross Day Overshadowed By Pandemic Concerns
The World Red Cross Day celebrating the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement was overshadowed Friday by concerns that the coronavirus would spread to overcrowded refugee camps.
US Clinical Trial Launched to Assess Power of Prayer for COVID-19 Patients
A US clinical trial has been launched into whether multi-denominational prayer can help patients with COVID-19, the New York Post reports. Dr. Dhanunjaya Lakkireddy, a cardiologist at the Kansas City Heart Rhythm Institute, is leading a trial involving 1000 coronavirus patients who require intensive care because of the infection. The trial began on May 1 and is due to last four months.
U.S.-led Forces Attack Islamic State in Syria
U.S.-led coalition forces have reportedly hit back against an Islamic State cell in Syria. They captured a midlevel leader linked to increasing attacks by the terror group in the Deir el-Zour countryside, the Voice of America (VOA) network said Thursday.
Freedom House: ‘Hungary No Longer Democracy’
A leading democracy watchdog has suggested that Hungary has become the first non-democratic European Union member state, prompting an angry reaction from the government. Washington-based Freedom House also warned that Poland is heading towards the same direction.
Putin-Trump call focuses on coronavirus, arms control, oil
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed progress in combating the coronavirus pandemic along with arms control issues and oil prices in a phone call Thursday, the White House and the Kremlin said.
Nearly 3.2 million new jobless claims across U.S. drives tally during outbreak to 33.5 million
Even as a handful of states have made tentative steps back to normalcy in recent days, new jobless claims continue to flood in across all 50 states, driving the number of unemployment claims to 33.5 million over the past seven weeks.
America’s Unique Bond with Israel on This National Day of Prayer
Today, May 7th is the National Day of Prayer in the United States, a tradition that began as early as 1775. In 2019, President Donald Trump proclaimed “Our Nation’s honored tradition of prayer has sustained us and strengthened our trust that God will continue to watch over and accompany us through the best of times and the darkest hours. May we as Americans never forget the power of prayer and the greatness of our Creator. On this National Day of Prayer, let each of us, according to our own faiths, call upon God for His guidance and express our gratitude for the love and grace He bestows on us and our country.”
Samaritan’s Purse among volunteer health workers required to pay New York income tax for helping during pandemic
Having been asked to come to New York City to help with the COVID-19 crisis, disaster relief organization Samaritan’s Purse (SP) has been told it must pay state taxes for the time it spent running its free-of-charge field hospital in Central Park.
U.S. Supreme Court Hears Nuns In Contraceptives Case
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether nuns could be forced to facilitate abortion-causing drugs and other contraceptives such as sterilizations. Its first liberty case began Wednesday involving the Little Sisters of the Poor organization, which has been supporting the poor and dying since 1839.
Hungary Rejects Treaty On Violence Against Women
Rights group Amnesty International has condemned the Hungarian parliament’s rejection of an international treaty to combat violence against women amid a coronavirus pandemic. “This decision is extremely dangerous,” said David Vig, Amnesty’s Hungary director. “It comes at a time when reported domestic violence incidents in Hungary have doubled since the start of the [new coronavirus] COVID-19 lockdown” to halt the virus outbreak.