As the World Tackles the COVID-19 Pandemic, the U.S. Raises the Pressure on Venezuela
Vijay Prashad, Paola Estrada, Ana Maldonado, and Zoe PC | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
In a press conference on March 26, it was almost comical how little evidence the U.S. Department of Justice provided when it accused Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro and several of the leaders of his government of narco-trafficking. The U.S. offered $15 million for the arrest of Maduro and $10 million for the others. Maduro, U.S.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/as-the-world-tackles-the-covid-19-pandemic-the-u-s-raises-the-pressure-on-venezuela/
Going After Maduro
Ron Jacobs | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
The recent indictments of Nicolas Maduro and other Venezuelan government officials on drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges is a sham. It is a politically motivated and hypocritical attack on the elected government of Venezuela. Obviously, it is another front in the ongoing US low-intensity war on the majority of Venezuelans. It is cynical in that Venezuela's neighbor Colombia has been literally governed by drug traffickers for most of the past thirty years, if not longer. | …
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/going-after-maduro/
Sacramento Police Have Arrested Unhoused People Seeking to Shelter in Place
Asantewaa Boykin, APTP | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
At a time when the entire State of California has been asked to shelter in place, unhoused populations remain unprotected, with nowhere to go, no house to shelter in, no sanitary supplies, and no means by which to honor social distancing requirements.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/29/18831920.php
U.S. Imperialism Pulls Desperate Move in Venezuela
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-03-29
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC). | For years, the criminal government of the United States has attempted to remove the democratically elected president of Venezuela and discredit the peoples' movement in that country that has been so successful in lifting millions of Venezuelans out of extreme poverty. Under the corrupt Trump administration alone, the United States has conducted multiple illegal attacks against President Nicolas Maduro and the people of Venezuela, including: failed assassination attempts by drone, poorly orchestrated mi…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/3/29/us-imperialism-pulls-desperate-move-venezuela
Cuba Reports 139 Cases of Coronavirus and 3 Deaths
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-29
Dr. José àÅngel Portal Miranda, Minister of Public Health of the Republic of Cuba, reported that on Saturday, 20 new positive cases of Covid-19 (coronavirus) were confirmed, after more than 200 diagnostic tests were performed during the day. | RELATED: | Cuba's Medical Brigade Fight Along With Jamaica Against COVID-19 | The country's situation to date is as followed: 139 cases of coronavirus, 1.34 per 100,000 inhabitants. Three deaths have been registered, leading to a…
telesurenglish.net/news/Cuba-Reports-139-Cases-of-Coronavirus-and-3-Deaths-20200329-0005.html
Venezuela Never Part of US Drug Circuit: Ex-UN Anti-Drugs Chief
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-29
Former Vice Secretary of the United Nations and Former Executive Director of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime Pino Arlacchi reminded Saturday that Venezuela has always been outside the main cocaine trafficking circuits between the world's main producer and consumer; Colombia and the United States. | RELATED: | The U.S. Harasses Venezuela Amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic | "I have been dealing with the issue of drugs for forty years, and I have never encountered Venezuela. Before, durin…
telesurenglish.net/news/Venezuela-Never-Part-of-US-Drug-Circuit-Ex-UN-Anti-Drugs-Arlacchi-20200329-0011.html
Evo Morales Expresses Solidarity With Venezuela Amid US Attacks
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-29
Former Bolivian President Evo Morales said that with the most recent attack by the United States government against Venezuela, Washington intends to distract public opinion about the collapse of the country's health services in the face of Covid-19. | RELATED: | Russia Calls to Lift 'Genocidal' Sanctions Against Venezuela | "The US is in a humanitarian crisis. The health services of its main cities are beginning to collapse," stressed the leader of the Movement to Socialism (MAS) o…
telesurenglish.net/news/Evo-Morales-Expresses-Solidarity-With-Venezuela-Amid-US-Attacks-20200329-0004.html
Beyond Chutzpah: US Charges Venezuela with Nacro-Terrorism
Roger D. Harris | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-29
According to the parable, the ungrateful son takes out a life insurance policy on his parents, murders them to collect, and is caught and found guilty. At his sentencing, the judge asks if he has anything to say on his behalf. The son replies: "Have mercy upon me because I am an orphan." That's chutzpah. …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/beyond-chutzpah-us-charges-venezuela-with-nacro-terrorism/
[World Report] Venezuelan migrants "struggling to survive" amid COVID-19
Joe Parkin Daniels | thelancet.com | 2020-03-28
Humanitarian organisations are concerned that border closures and health-care shortages are amplifying the challenges posed by COVID-19. Joe Parkin Daniels reports from Bogotá.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30718-2/fulltext?rss=yes
[Editorial] Learning the lessons of Chernobyl: time is running out
The Lancet | thelancet.com | 2020-03-28
Unit number 4 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded on April 26, 1986, causing radiation injuries to hundreds of people within a couple of weeks. High levels of radiation affected clean-up workers (liquidators) involved in the emergency response, more than 500‚Äà000 liquidators involved in later decontamination and containment, and the general population in the surrounding Soviet states. 116‚Äà000 people were evacuated, 220‚Äà000 were permanently relocated, and a 30 km exclusion zone still exists around the plant.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30687-5/fulltext?rss=yes
Trump's Narcoterrorism Indictment of Maduro Already Backfires
Leonardo Flores | commondreams.org | 2020-03-28
A U.S. Justice Department images displays charges against Venezuelan President Nicol√°s Maduro and other Venezuelan officials on March 26, 2020. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/charges-maduro-doj.jpg …
commondreams.org/views/2020/03/28/trumps-narcoterrorism-indictment-maduro-already-backfires?cd-origin=rss
Cuba's Medical Brigade Fight Along With Jamaica Against COVID-19
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-28
Cuba's medical brigade is currently fighting along with the Jamaican people and government against the Covid-19 pandemic, which is the result of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. | RELATED: | Expert: Cuban Health System's Strength Against COVID-19 | In statements to Prensa Latina on Internet, doctor Jose Armando Arronte, head of Cuba's Medical Brigade (BMC) in this nation, confirmed the favorable health condition of all collaborators who comply with health measures to the threatening of…
telesurenglish.net/news/Cubas-Medical-Brigade-Fight-Along-With-Jamaica-Against-COVID-19-20200328-0006.html
Russia Calls to Lift 'Genocidal' Sanctions Against Venezuela
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-28
Russia's Foreing Minister Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova Friday reiterated her country's call to lift the illegal economic sanctions imposed by the United States on Venezuela, which they consider as a "genocide tool" in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. | RELATED: | Putin Urges G20 to Lift Sanctions on Goods Due to COVID-19 | "We will not tire of repeating our call to immediately cancel arbitrary unilateral sanctions that at the current juncture of the epidemic become almost a weapo…
telesurenglish.net/news/Russia-Calls-to-Lift-Genocidal-Sanctions-Against-Venezuela-20200328-0001.html
Migrants in Hawaii care for the elderly, the aloha way
news.un.org | 2020-03-27
Migrants are playing an increasingly important role in the provision of health care around the world. The number of doctors, nurses and other medical professionals who move from developing countries to take up posts in developed countries is expected to rise as the global population of older persons and children continues to grow.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/03/1060152
With a Quarter of the World's Population Under US Sanctions, Countries Appeal to UN to Intervene
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-27
Eight countries, representing around one-quarter of all humanity, say that Washington's actions are undermining their response to the COVID–19 pandemic sweeping the planet.
mintpressnews.com/coronavirus-quarter-worlds-population-under-us-sanctions-appeal-to-un/266096/
Expert: Cuban Health System's Strength Against COVID-19
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-27
Cuba's health system is capable of facing the challenge posed by the coronavirus SARS Cov-2, which causes Covid-19 disease, said here today Marylin Celestrin, master in infectious diseases. | RELATED: | Over 45 Countries Ask Cuba for Interferon to Treat Covid-19 | 'Despite the limitations imposed by the U.S. blockade policy, our country is capable of dealing with the pandemic with a public health system that reaches all the population, free of charge,' Celestrin told Prensa Latina. | She…
telesurenglish.net/news/Expert-Cuban-Health-Systems-Strength-Against-COVID-19-20200327-0013.html
UNFPA advocates for women, girls suffering unseen impacts of COVID-19 pandemic
news.un.org | 2020-03-27
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is pledging support for those suffering from invisible impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including women and girls whose access to life-saving sexual and reproductive health care may be disrupted.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/03/1060512
As the World tackles the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. raises the pressure on Venezuela
Vijay Prashad | mronline.org | 2020-03-26
In a press conference on March 26, it was almost comical how little evidence the U.S. Department of Justice provided when it accused Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro and several of the leaders of his government of narco-trafficking. The U.S. offered $15 million for the arrest of Maduro and $10 million for the others. Maduro, U.S. …
mronline.org/2020/03/26/as-the-world-tackles-the-covid-19-pandemic-the-u-s-raises-the-pressure-on-venezuela/
"People Go Before Money. This Is About Saving Lives," Says San Juan Mayor on Pandemic in Puerto Rico
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-25
Puerto Rico announced a record $787 million financial package to fight the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic Monday, as the island's death toll hits two with 39 cases reported. The pandemic follows a series of devastating earthquakes in Puerto Rico earlier this year and comes as the island continues to deal with fallout from Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico's infrastructure and killed at least 3,000. "One of the things that I think is evident is that with the Trump administration and FEMA, we have to continue to remind them, time and time again, that we are people and that we deserve to be…
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/25/puerto_rico_coronavirus_carmen_yulin_cruz
Media Struggle to Defend Washington's Cruelty Toward Venezuela and Iran as Coronavirus Spreads
Joe Emersberger | fair.org | 2020-03-25
AP (New York Times, 3/17/20) accepts the IMF's excuse that lack of "clarity" over Venezuela's "rightful leader" prevents it from giving the country coronavirus aid–even though in 2002, the IMF rapidly offered aid to a short-lived coup government. | An Associated Press article (New York Times, 3/17/20) headlined "IMF Rejects Maduro's Bid for Emergency Loan to Fight Virus" declared: The r…
fair.org/home/media-struggle-to-defend-washingtons-cruelty-toward-venezuela-and-iran-as-coronavirus-spreads/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=media-struggle-to-defend-washingtons-cruelty-toward-venezuela-and-iran-as-coronavirus-spreads
Venezuela's Coronavirus Response Might Surprise You
Leonardo Flores | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-25
Unlike in the United States where coronavirus treatment can cost up to $35,000 and where Trump seems more concerned about the economy than about peoples' lives, Venezuela is handling the crisis by placing value in health over profits.
mintpressnews.com/venezuelas-coronavirus-response-might-surprise-you/266036/
After expelling Cuban doctors, Brazil requests their help to fight COVID-19
Susan Price | greenleft.org.au | 2020-03-25
Healthcare Latin America & the Caribbean Ben NortonIssue 1258 Brazil COVID-19 Cuban doctorsMarch 25, 2020The coronavirus pandemic ha…
greenleft.org.au/content/after-expelling-cuban-doctors-brazil-requests-their-help-fight-covid-19
Cuba saves Italians from coronavirus despite US blockade
Anya Parampil | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-24
Red Lines host Anya Parampil provides a coronavirus update, highlighting the heroic work of Cuban doctors who have traveled to…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/24/cuba-italians-coronavirus-us-blockade/
"Humanitarian Solidarity": Even Under U.S. Sanctions, Cuba Sends Doctor Brigade to Italy and More
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-24
As Italy's death toll soars past 6,000, Cuba has sent medical brigades to combat COVID-19. Cuba has also deployed doctors to Venezuela, Nicaragua, Jamaica, Suriname and Grenada. "The arrival of a medical brigade from Cuba to Italy is pretty historic. You have a leading European nation accepting support in the form of a medical team from a small Caribbean island," says our guest, Peter Kornbluh, director of the Cuba Documentation Project at the National Security Archive at George Washington University. "It just goes to the history of Cuba's deep and long-lasting commitment to humanitarian solidarity with other cou…
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/24/cuba_medical_diplomacy_italy_coronavirus
King David's Ancient Road: How Israeli Archaeologists Are Aiding the Theft of Silwan
Miko Peled | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-24
Claiming "science" as their reason and in total disregard for the wellbeing of the population, tunnels are dug under Palestinian homes in Silwan, destroying foundations and forcing residents to flee.
mintpressnews.com/how-israel-archeologists-aiding-theft-silwan/266005/
Expert: US sanctions on Iran, Venezuela during pandemic could be genocidal
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-20
Intensified US sanctions on Iran, Venezuela during the COVID-19 pandemic could amount to genocide, a former UN expert warns. Iran…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/20/expert-us-sanctions-on-iran-venezuela-during-pandemic-could-be-genocidal/
[Correspondence] Future of Chernobyl research: the urgency for consolidated action
Evgenia Ostroumova, Joachim Schàºz, Ausrele Kesminiene | thelancet.com | 2020-03-18
The Chernobyl nuclear disaster on April 26, 1986, continues to create fears and myths about its health consequences, as shown by the large response to a top-rated HBO miniseries devoted to the tragic event. Risk assessments range from recognising an increase in thyroid cancer incidence in exposed children and adolescents (becoming one of the single most established long-term health effects of the Chernobyl disaster on the general population), to claims of hundreds of thousands of deaths due to the accident.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30675-9/fulltext?rss=yes
No, Venezuela does not have a six child per family policy
Joe Emersberger | zcomm.org | 2020-03-13
I respect UK journalist Andrew Buncombe. As I noted for FAIR last year, he was one of the few corporate journalists who reported on a study linking Trump's financial sanctions on Venezuela to thousands of deaths by the end of 2018. Since 2018, Trump has repeatedly intensified the sanctions and threatened Venezuela with military action, Read…
zcomm.org/zblogs/no-venezuela-does-not-have-a-six-child-per-family-policy/
Julio López Varona on Puerto Rico's Disaster Capitalism
CounterSpin | fair.org | 2020-03-13
Media…
fair.org/home/julio-lopez-varona-on-puerto-ricos-disaster-capitalism/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=julio-lopez-varona-on-puerto-ricos-disaster-capitalism
[Comment] Getting to zero in the DR Congo Ebola outbreak
Ranu S Dhillon, Devabhaktuni Srikrishna, Gerardo Chowell | thelancet.com | 2020-03-09
Any plan to stop the ongoing Ebola outbreak in eastern DR Congo must be based on a quantitative understanding of the proportion of the at-risk population that needs to be protected by effective control measures for transmission to decline sufficiently and quickly enough for the outbreak to end.
thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(20)30056-6/fulltext?rss=yes
[Comment] Patchy progress on the ICPD: are we asking the right questions?
Dorothy Shaw | thelancet.com | 2020-03-09
The International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) agenda, set in 1994 in Cairo and revisited 25 years later in Nairobi in 2019, included goals for equitable education of women, reduction of infant and child mortality, reduction of maternal mortality, and access to reproductive and sexual health services, including family planning, through its well known Programme of Action.1 The ICPD was ground-breaking in recognising the benefits that empowerment of women and girls would have for themselves, their families, and, ultimately, their countries.
thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(20)30080-2/fulltext?rss=yes