(2020-04-28). Exporting COVID-19: ICE Air Conducted Deportation Flights to 11 LAC Countries, Flight Data Shows. cepr.net 
There were 232 likely ICE Air deportation flights to Latin America and Caribbean countries between February 3, 2020 and April 24, 2020, CEPR analysis shows. In 2019, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported 267,258 individuals — 96 percent of whom were from the Latin America and Caribbean region. Though much of the media focus has …
(2020-04-28). During Coronvrius: Cuba to the rescue, but don't tell the American people. mronline.org 
Anti-Cuba zealots in the Trump administration have been enticing Cuban doctors working overseas to defect, paying journalists to write negative stories, slapping sanctions on Cubans in charge of the program, and strong-arming countries to expel Cuban doctors.
(2020-04-28). Video: Venezuela and the Struggle Against Empire: Ajamu Baraka. globalresearch.ca Black Alliance for Peace National Organizer Ajamu Baraka discussed the role of U.S. activists in stopping the U.S. war machine during "An Inside View of Resistance to US Imperialism in Venezuela and How to Build International Solidarity," a webinar co-hosted …
(2020-04-28). Gunshots ring out and cars are set ablaze in Haiti as police officers protest against government corruption (VIDEO). rt.com 
Rioting cops stormed the Finance Ministry in the capital over complaints about their pay and working conditions, as Covid-19 rips through the impoverished Caribbean nation. | Videos from the scene show cars set ablaze and government buildings being stormed, as Haitian police took to the streets of Port au Prince on Monday. | Officers went out to protest their pay, working conditions, and government corruption against the bleak backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has put further strain on the country's dire economic situation. | Rioting cops, calling themselves 'Fantomes 509' (Ghosts 509) exchanged gunf…
(2020-04-28). Is Trump Using the U.S. Military for Regime Change in Venezuela? globalresearch.ca U.S. policy towards Venezuela has been a head-spinning series of contradictions lately, with no end in sight. From placing a bounty on the heads of President Nicolas Maduro and a dozen current and former Venezuelan officials, to upping sanctions and …
(2020-04-28). No need to extend Covid-19 home quarantine: Austria to let people out from May 1 and allow gatherings soon. rt.com 
Austrians will soon be able to walk with no restrictions and gather in groups of 10, as coronavirus measures will be gradually lifted starting next month. | The easing of the self-isolation measures was announced by Health Minister Rudolf Anschober, who said that the spread of the novel coronavirus remains quite slow and the forecast for the upcoming month looks "very good." He also said that the nation has coped with the epidemic "very well," all thanks to the population, which "made it possible." | The minister then said that going out will be permitted again starting from May 1, although a "minimal distance…
(2020-04-28). Egypt's president extends 3-year state of emergency by 3 months amid virus & security fears. rt.com 
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ordered a three-month renewal for the long-running state of emergency in the country on Tuesday, citing health and security concerns. Egypt has been under a state of emergency since April 2017, when twin church bombings claimed by an Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) affiliate group killed dozens of people. | The new extension comes as the government battles to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the Arab world's most populous country. | The Health Ministry has so far recorded 4,782 coronavirus cases among the population of 100 million. Of those, 337 have d…
(2020-04-28). Israeli police 'shoot & neutralize' assailant who stabbed Kfar Saba woman in suspected terror attack. rt.com 
A woman has been stabbed in Israel's central city of Kfar Saba, in what police are investigating as a potential terror attack. The woman, 62, was taken in a moderate-to-serious condition to a nearby hospital, the Times of Israel reported on Tuesday, citing medics. | The assailant was shot and "neutralized," the Zaka emergency service said. It did not specify whether he is still alive. | Police officers are working at the scene of the attack. They have shut down nearby roads, according to the report.
(2020-04-28). Haiti: Food Crisis Persists Amid COVID-19 Pandemic. telesurenglish.net Haiti's UN representative, Elisabeth Byrs, said there is a famine and food crisis possibility in the Caribbean nation due to the economic COVID-19 impact. | RELATED: | Byrs requested immediate food aid to the World Food Program and stressed the COVID-19 emergency harmed food production. The UN representative expressed her concern about possible famines after the virus outbreak aggravated the severe social situation in Haitian territory…
(2020-04-28). Cuba-Vietnam Trade Agreement in Force Despite Pandemic. telesurenglish.net The Vietnam Trade and Industry Ministry Sunday stated new commercial trade will take place with Cuba. The agreement will come into effect on April 1st. | RELATED: | The commercial contract will regulate the certification processes needed for the inspection of goods. These norms apply to both countries in the merchandise exchange. Vietnamese Exportation and Importation Department also provides preferential tax rates on freights. | The Vietnam-Cuba trade a…
(2020-04-28). Trump and McConnell Aren't Waging War on COVID. They're Waging War on Us. truthout.org Donald Trump and his top Republican allies in Congress are fighting a war, and the battle lines have begun to clarify themselves. Their war is not being waged against COVID-19, the pandemic that has killed tens of thousands in this nation alone. Their war is being waged against the nation itself, and specifically against areas of the nation that are heavy on population but light on Trump supporters. | In other words, the big-city blue states, whose governors have refused to fawn over Trump's gibberi…
(2020-04-27). A Soft Power Ploy? Cuba Continues to Aid the Poorest and Least Influential Nations. mintpressnews.com As the coronavirus pandemic grows worse in many countries, Cuba has answered an urgent South African request for aid, sending 217 medical personnel to the country.
(2020-04-27). Defeating U.S. imperialism at Playa Girón. strategic-culture.org "We'd done some very important things, but we hadn't proclaimed ourselves as being socialists, or openly proclaimed Marxist-Leninist doctrines. Girón accelerated the revolutionary process." Cuban leader Fidel Castro's reflections about Playa Girón, discussed with Ignacio Ramonet during conversations which led to the publication of the revolutionary leader's autobiography, indicate the magnitude of defeat for U.S. imperialism at the Bay of Pigs invasion which lasted from April 17 until April 19, 1961. In less than 72 hours, the Cuban revolutionary forces had defeated the 1,500 CIA-trained infiltrators. | The U.S.
(2020-04-27). Cuba's Covid-19 Medical Brigades Are Not Medical Diplomacy: They Are International Solidarity at Its Finest. dissidentvoice.org 
Cuban Medical Brigade going to Italy (Photo credit: Ismael Francisco Gonzalez) Today the latest medical brigade from Cuba's Henry Reeves contingent arrived in South Africa to join the front lines with those saving lives in the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic. After a 14 day quarantine the 216 member group, made up of family physicians, …
(2020-04-27). A Small-Town Pharmacy in Europe's Westernmost Country Confronts Covid-19. counterpunch.org 
Portugal, a country roughly equivalent in size to Pennsylvania with a population of 10,276,617, registered its first coronavirus case on March 2. The country imposed a state of emergency on March 2. By April 23, 785 people died and 21,982 have been infected with the virus.
(2020-04-27). Cuba Develops First COVID-19 Tracking App. telesurenglish.net Yosvel Falero is one of the developers of the first Cuban COVID-19 tracking app aimed at supporting efforts to stem the spread of the virus nationwide. | RELATED: | The 37-year-old honed his skills as a computer science professional through a Chinese government scholarship in the city of Wuhan in 2018. | "What I learnt in China has been fundamental to develop this app which will facilitate better and quicker detection…
(2020-04-27). Cuba Plans National Production of Drug Against COVID-19. telesurenglish.net The Cuban pharmaceutic Company MedSol Laboratories develops antiretroviral Kaletra; this drug has been effectively used to treat COVID-19 infected patients. | RELATED: | MedSol research and development group, Novatec, is because of Kaletra's testing and production. According to Adalberto Izquierdo Castro, Novatec's manager, the drug is in the development stage. So far, Cuban laboratories produced three pilot batches and ca…
(2020-04-27). COVID-19 Is Exacerbating Food Crisis in Haiti: UN. telesurenglish.net More than four million Haitians, almost a third of the island's population, are in need of emergency food assistance, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) warned Friday, highlighting that the COVID-19 crisis has worsened the situation. | RELATED: | "The situation was already very worrying in Haiti, but it has worsened with the COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced the closure of ports and airports, as well as school…
(2020-04-27). NYPD officer stripped of gun and badge after driving into Jamaica Bay. nationofchange.org According to police sources, the officer was disciplined for associating with a known felon, not for driving the vehicle into the water.
(2020-04-27). Colombia Delays Venezuelans From Returning to Their Country. telesurenglish.net The Colombian authorities have delayed nearly 12,000 Venezuelans from returning to their country, leaving them stranded on their side of the border. | RELATED: | Venezuelans stranded at the Colombian border decided to return home due to the health crisis caused by the COVID-19. | According to teleSUR correspondent in Colombia Hernan Tobar, about 180 people are waiting since Thursday in Barrio Visión Colombia, west of Bogotá, for t…
(2020-04-26). Cuban News Agency Reporter Arrested in Chile for 'No Reason'. telesurenglish.net Cuban news agency Prensa Latina's reporter Damian Trujillo was detained Sunday in Chile's Santiago, during a protest marking the day on which the country's constitutional referendum would have taken place, had it not been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. | RELATED: | A group of Carabineros, the Chilean police, arrested the journalist and placed him in their van while his colleagues protested and asked for…
(2020-04-26). Voluntarios cubanos apoyan lucha contra la COVID-19. peoplesworld.org 
LA HABANA (Xinhua) — Cuando le avisaron, Daniel Lázaro García no dudó en aceptar: tenía que reincorporarse a la Universidad de Ciencias Informáticas (UCI) de La Habana, pero no para trabajar como programador. Ahora, sería voluntario en la atención a unas 600 personas que por estos días viven en el centro de aislamiento improvisado en …
(2020-04-26). Former Jamaican Prime Minister Applauds Cuba's Generosity. telesurenglish.net The former Prime Minister of Jamaica Percival James Patterson acknowledged Cuba's international assistance in tackling the global COVID-19 pandemic, he said in a statement issued last Wednesday by the PJ Patterson Center for Africa-Caribbean Policy Advocacy of the University of the West Indies (UWI). | RELATED: | "Former Prime Minister Patterson applauds the generosity of the government and people of Cuba by sending hundred…
(2020-04-26). Cuban Doctors Head to South Africa to Help Fight COVID-19. telesurenglish.net A new Cuban medical brigade is scheduled to arrive in South Africa on Sunday to join another group of Cuban colleagues, who are already working in the African country to reinforce the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. | RELATED: | In the framework of the solidarity cooperation offered by the island at the international level, the 24 specialized medical brigade of the Cuban internationalist contingent Henry Reeve, responded t…
(2020-04-26). Argentina Welcomes Cuban Medical Aid, Slams US Blockade. telesurenglish.net Argentina has invited citizens to sign a proclamation to welcome Cuban medical aid workers and those of any other nationality, and to oppose the United States' (US) campaign against Cuba's policy of solidarity with the world. | RELATED: | In the letter, signed by the President of Abuelas de Mayo, Estela de Carlotto, the political scientist Atilio Borón, the writer Stella Calloni and the actresses Cecilia Roth and…
(2020-04-26). Palestinians Hunker Down for Ramadan, Facing a Virus that doesn't Discriminate but an Occupier that does. dissidentvoice.org As the holy fasting month of Ramadan begins, the coronavirus outbreak in Israel and the Palestinian territories is proving how inevitably intertwined the two populations' lives are, while also underlining the extreme differentials of power between them. While 15,000 Israelis have tested positive for Covid-19 so far, the numbers infected in the occupied territories are …
(2020-04-28). Latin America to see sharp increase in hunger, poverty: FAO report. yenisafak.com Hunger and poverty are set to spike in Latin America and the Caribbean as the impact of the novel coronavirus ravages the region ¥s economies and disrupts supply chains, according to a report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).Most countries across Latin America have been forced to shutter their economies, dashing hopes for growth and sending forecasts for unemployment spiraling upward.The U.N. agency said there should still be plenty of food available in both regional and international reserves but warned hobbled supply chains could complicate access to those stores, especially for…
(2020-04-28). India discusses lockdown easing amid record virus toll. yenisafak.com In a video conference on Tuesday with the chief ministers running each of the country's 28 states, India's prime minister discussed how to ease ongoing lockdown restrictions amid the highest national single-day death toll of 62 due to the novel coronavirus.During the meeting, the chief ministers requested that premier Narendra Modi extend the lockdown until May 21 amid efforts to slowly and gradually lift the precautionsThe South Asian nation of around 1.3 billion population now suffers a total of 29,451 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 939 deaths, with over 1,500 testing positive for the virus in the last 24…
(2020-04-28). Woman Stabbed in Israel in Potential Terrorist Attack, Perpetrator 'Neutralized' – Reports. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – A 62-year old woman was stabbed in the central Israeli city of Kfar Saba in what police are now investigating as a potential terrorist attack, The Times of Israel reported on Tuesday.
(2020-04-28). Venezuela: Bolivarian Revolution stopping COVID-19 in its tracks. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-04-25). Cuban workers mark Lenin's 150th birthday, May Day plans announced. fightbacknews.org According to April 23 report in Granma, "On Havana's Lenin Hill, a small group of trade union leaders, headed by Ulises Guilarte de Nacimiento, Party Political Bureau member and general secretary of the Cuban Workers Federation (CTC), dedicated a floral tribute to the legendary Bolshevik, who played a key role in the Russian Revolution, the greatest lesson in the annals of history of what the emancipated working class can achieve in unity of thought and action, guided by socialist principles." | The newspaper of the Communist Party of Cuba also reported on the plans for this year's traditionally massive May…
(2020-04-25). Liberia: Ebola contact tracing lessons inform COVID-19 response. news.un.org Lessons learned during the Ebola outbreak in Liberia six years ago are helping the West African country to confront the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) which is working alongside the World Health Organization (WHO) on surveillance and the coordination of contact tracing.
(2020-04-23). Global Health Doctor: Hire 1000s of Contact Tracers to Stop COVID-19, Save Lives and the Economy. democracynow.org 
As parts of the United States and Europe consider reopening, most of the world's population remains susceptible to the coronavirus. We look at new efforts to stop the deadly spread of COVID-19 with contact tracing — finding who infected patients have been in contact with so they can get tested and isolated. We'll speak with global health expert Dr. Joia Mukherjee, with Partners in Health, about a contact tracing project she is working on now in Massachusetts.
(2020-04-22). Bill McKibben on Earth Day at 50: We Must Stop Subsidizing Fossil Fuel Industry Wrecking the Planet. democracynow.org 
Today marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, when more than 20 million Americans joined in actions to protect the environment — 10% of the U.S. population at the time. Half a century later, in the middle of a pandemic, protests planned around the world have moved online, and the Trump administration has gutted the Environmental Protection Agency — established not long after Earth Day — rolled back fuel economy standards and eased the enforcement of pollution regulations. "The countries that flattened the coronavirus curve early on are doing far better than those like ours, which delayed," says…
(2020-04-22). New Model Shows Reducing Jail Population will Lower COVID-19 Death Toll for All of Us. aclu.org 
The Trump administration optimistically projects that "substantially under" 100,000 people will die from COVID-19 in the United States. Horrific as that statistic is,
(2020-04-22). Tracking COVID-19 in Latin America and the Caribbean. cepr.net The COVID-19 data tracker will be continually updated as the pandemic spreads throughout the region and CEPR experts will be providing regular analysis on The Americas Blog.
(2020-04-20). Human Rights Watch cabildea por sanciones letales contra Nicaragua y Venezuela, mientras arrecia la crisis de Covid-19. thegrayzone.com Human Rights Watch está orgullosamente asumiendo el crédito por sanciones devastadoras contra Nicaragua, mientras busca escalar la guerra económica en…
(2020-04-17). A Tale of Two Countries: Racially Targeted Arrests in the Era of Marijuana Reform. aclu.org 