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Hungarian oil and gas group MOL said on Wednesday one of its factories had been converted to produce disinfectant sanitizer liquids to help combat the spread of the coronavirus.
 
MOL’s managing director Peter Ratatics told a news conference the plant in Almasfuzito, western Hungary, would produce 50,000 liters of sanitizer liquids per day. The plant has been manufacturing car screen wash liquids.
 
MOL will also start producing sanitizers at its plants in Croatia and Slovakia to cover local needs.
 
Hungary has 226 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, and 10 people have died, according to official government figures.
 
Hungary’s government is considering a national lockdown to combat the virus, Prime Minister Viktor Orban told lawmakers on Monday as his cabinet sought to secure emergency powers it says are needed to tackle the outbreak.
 
MOL shares were up 0.7% at 2,014 forints on Wednesday, underperforming the wider Budapest market which was 2.2% higher.
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Israel’s parliament speaker resigned Wednesday after seven years on the job rather than comply with a Supreme Court order to convene a vote on his replacement. Yuli Edelstein had suspended parliamentary activities last week, citing procedural issues and restrictions on large gatherings due to the spread of the coronavirus. But opponents accused him of blocking a vote after his right-wing bloc failed to win a majority in March 2 elections. He dismissed a Supreme Court call to explain his delay in convening the Israeli Knesset, or parliament, and that sparked an unprecedented judicial rebuttal, with the Supreme Court chief justice ordering him to hold a vote. With other top members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party urging him to defy the order, he responded that he would “not agree to an ultimatum” and resigned instead. “The Supreme Court decision destroys the work of the Knesset. The Supreme Court decision marks a harsh and arrogant intervention of the judicial branch in the affairs of the elected legislative branch,” Edelstein charged in his last appearance as speaker.  He said he would step down so as not to allow Israel to “descend into anarchy” and devolve into civil war. But in his last act he also said parliament would only reconvene next week, in apparent defiance of the Supreme Court order that a vote be held by Wednesday. The move may put him in contempt of the court. The showdown marked the height of an ever-deepening standoff between Netanyahu’s opponents and supporters in the wake of the country’s third inconclusive election in less than a year and against the backdrop of a series of emergency executive measures the caretaker government has enacted to quell the spread of the new virus. Netanyahu’s Likud emerged as the largest party in the election earlier this month, but along with his smaller religious and nationalist allies, won only the support of 58 lawmakers — leaving his right-wing bloc three seats short of the required majority in parliament. Opposition leader Benny Gantz is backed by a slim majority in the newly elected Knesset and has been pushing for the country’s legislature to continue functioning at such a critical time, even without a permanent government in place. His majority bloc is deeply divided along ideological lines and unlikely to band together to form an alternative government. But they are determined to oppose the criminally indicted Netanyahu and seem willing to cooperate in parliament, accusing Edelstein of shuttering the halls of the legislature in order to keep his job and shield his beleaguered party leader. They bloc is expected to win a vote to nominate Meir Cohen of Gantz’s centrist Blue and White party as Edelstein’s replacement.  Edelstein resignation marked the first time in Israeli history that a Knesset speaker had stepped down. Netanyahu has called on Gantz to join him in an emergency government devoted to handling the coronavirus crisis together and to avoid the continued political deadlock that would likely force yet another election — one that likely won’t even be possible to carry out given the current state of lock down and contagion. The country have been nearly entirely shut down, with tens of thousands put out of work and all but essential movement from the home barred.  New restrictions approved Wednesday limit all those besides personnel deemed essential from venturing more that 100 meters (yards) from their homes, and all places of worship shuttered. In a recent surge, more than 2,000 Israelis have been infected, with 37 in serious condition. Five elderly Israelis with pre-existing medical conditions have died. Gantz has pledged to support the government in its effort to combat the virus. But he and his allies have been skeptical about Netanyahu’s power-sharing overtures, concerned that he will not follow through on his promises to cede power in 18 months. The party accuses Netanyahu and his caretaker government of carrying out undemocratic measures amid the crisis, and using it as cover to cling to power.  Netanyahu has already managed to postpone his own pending criminal trial on serious corruption charges and authorize unprecedented electronic surveillance of Israeli citizens. Even amid the health scare, Israelis have taken to the streets and waved black flags to protest what they consider an assault on Israeli democracy. Netanyahu supporters have held small counter rallies as well.  
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U.S. leaders said early Wednesday they have reached an agreement on a $2 trillion economic rescue package to help workers and businesses cope with the coronavirus outbreak. The text of the bill is due to be released Wednesday morning with a vote in the Senate to follow.  If the Senate gives its approval, the measure will go to the House of Representatives. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the bill is “far from perfect,” but that after improvements from days of negotiations it should be quickly approved. “We have a bipartisan agreement on the largest rescue package in American history,” Schumer said.  “This is not a moment of celebration, but one of necessity.” “Help is on the way,” Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. He described the measure as good news for doctors and nurses around the country who need more funding and protective equipment such as masks to care for coronavirus patients, as well as for families who are set to get checks as part of an effort to “inject trillions” of dollars into the U.S. economy. “In effect, this is a wartime level of investment into our nation,” McConnell said.Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. walks to the Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 23, 2020, as the Senate is working to pass a coronavirus relief bill.President Donald Trump says he wants to restart the U.S. economy as quickly as possible as lockdown orders in many states have kept workers home and closed businesses like restaurants, bars and movie theaters. The aid package is aimed at boosting the U.S. economy by sending direct payments to more than 90% of Americans and a vast array of U.S. businesses to help them weather the immediate and burgeoning economic effects of the coronavirus.     “This legislation is urgently needed to bolster the economy, provide cash injections and liquidity, and stabilize financial markets to get us through a difficult and challenging period in the economy facing us right now, but also to position us for what I think can be an economic rebound later this year,” said Trump’s top economic adviser Larry Kudlow.  Most U.S. families of four would get $3,000 in assistance, with the aid package also creating the $500 billion lending program for businesses, cities and states, and $350 billion more to help small businesses meet payroll costs at a time when there is a declining demand for their products and services.      During negotiations this week, Democrats focused their objections on the $500 billion lending program for businesses, which some critics called a “slush fund” because the Treasury Department would have wide discretion over who gets the money, with little accounting for how the money is spent.    That led to inclusion of an oversight panel to review the government handouts to businesses, to try to make certain the money is spent appropriately.   The United States has about 55,000 confirmed cases with more than 700 deaths from the coronavirus. 
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South Sudan is shutting down Juba International Airport and all border entry points to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The head of airport said aviation officials Tuesday canceled all passenger flights from Kenya and Ethiopia scheduled to arrive in Juba.    A task force of senior government officials chaired by First Vice President Riek Machar met Monday to assess the risks of the pandemic spreading to South Sudan.  Makur Koryom, undersecretary in the health ministry, said the decision to shut down the airport was made after considering all the ways the virus can reach South Sudan.  “All international flights destined to and from South Sudan, Juba International Airport, are advised to cease their operations by midnight,” Koryom said.  Kur Kuol Ajieu, director of Juba International Airport said when the order was issued, he acted immediately to cancel incoming flights.  “We shut down all operations to South Sudan so there will be no passenger flights to come. We may only allow cargo [planes] but provided that the pilot does not come out. And after we disembark, the plane goes back,” Ajieu said.     Flights through South Sudan airspace are free to fly so long as they don’t land in the country according to Koryom. A pilot seeking an emergency landing is allowed to do so with the condition passengers remain on the plane.  All border crossing points with the neighboring countries are closed.  “Coming to South Sudan or traveling to neighboring countries will cease as of [Monday night] and only cargo buses, food trucks and fuel tankers are allowed,” Koryom told reporters in Juba Tuesday.  Juba resident Gismala Sebit said the decision to close South Sudan’s borders is for the good of all South Sudanese “because all countries have done the same. I call upon South Sudanese to pay much attention on this issue,” Sebit told South Sudan in Focus. FILE – People and luggage are seen outside Juba International Airport, Aug. 4, 2005.Members of the high-level COVID-19 task force noted that certain government officials who arrived in the country last weekend refused to observe the 14-day self-quarantine directive from President Salva Kiir.  “The task force therefore appeals to the senior government officials to observe these regulations and instruct the law enforcement agencies to take immediate action to impose these orders,” Koryom said.  Koryom did not identify to which law enforcement agencies he was referring.  Sudanese authorities also have suspended all flights in and out of the country to combat the spread of the Coronavirus. Sudan reported its first coronavirus case last Thursday after a 52-year-old Sudanese man who had returned from the United Arab Emirates died. Following the unidentified man’s death, the government shut down universities, colleges and schools and closed most social gathering places for the next month to prevent the spread of the virus.  Sudan Sovereign Council member and spokesperson Mohamed Al Fekki Suleiman said Monday the government took swift action.  “The committee decided to shut down all the airports, river ports and all border crossings, with an exception of trips that are for humanitarian and technical support. Other schedule cargo set for earlier,” Fekki told South Sudan in Focus.  Fekki encouraged citizens to wash their hands with water and soap frequently to stop the spread of the coronavirus.  The government has set up three quarantine centers in River Nile state that are equipped to receive suspected cases.   “These measures are precautions to prevent the spread of coronavirus, and call on all citizens to cooperate with our medical and security teams and allow them to perform their official duties,” Fekki said.  Simon Mogga, a South Sudanese who has accompanied his sick cousin from Juba to Khartoum for further medical treatment for three months, said he was shocked by the decision to suspend flights to neighboring South Sudan.  “Our treatment is over. Tomorrow we are going for the last visit. But now due to this crisis of corona, all the flights are suspended. And being the head of the family, for a long time being somewhere without the family, there are a lot of challenges which is facing them,” Mogga told South Sudan in Focus.     Sudanese national Ihlaam Assadiq thinks the government is overreacting, adding that closing the airport will hurt the country’s economy.  “When you close down the airport, close universities and schools, that will affect the country economically. Where can they get income to the country?” Assadiq told South Sudan in Focus.  The government has asked public workers to stay home for a minimum of two weeks as the government continues to monitor the situation.  
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The global coronavirus outbreak keeps many of us at home and away from the things we enjoy. Sporting leagues around the world have postponed or canceled live competitions, and on Tuesday, the biggest event of them all, the summer Olympics, announced the Tokyo Games will be postponed to 2021. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi reports.
 
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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will not self-isolate after returning from Afghanistan and Qatar on Tuesday because neither country was on a U.S. government list calling for such precautions when he visited, a State Department medical official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, also said Pompeo’s choreographed movements in both places and the prior screening of people who came in contact with him meant it was a low or no-risk environment for him to catch the disease. Asked if Pompeo or his staff planned to self-quarantine for 14 days following their return Tuesday, the official told reporters in a call: “No, they are not,” and added: “There’s no intent to quarantine anyone because it’s not indicated.” However, Qatar was added to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Level 3 list on Tuesday, which says visitors “should stay home for 14 days after returning from travel, monitor their health, and practice social distancing.” FILE – The Souq Waqif tourist bazaar is almost deserted in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19, in Doha, Qatar, March 16, 2020.The official made references to an earlier version of the CDC list, seemingly unaware of Tuesday’s update. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Qatar’s addition to the list would change Pompeo’s recommended behavior or lead to his self-isolation for two weeks. Pompeo on Monday announced a $1 billion cut in U.S. aid to Afghanistan after he failed to convince Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his political adversary Abdullah Abdullah to end a feud that has helped jeopardize a U.S.-led peace effort. Pompeo met both men, both separately and together, while in Kabul on Monday and, on his way back to Washington, met for 75 minutes at a military base in Qatar with Taliban officials, including their top negotiator, Mullah Baradar Akhund. The official stressed that Pompeo was in carefully controlled environments during his trip and that all those who flew with him aboard a U.S. government plane and met him in Afghanistan were screened for symptoms such as fever. “According to the CDC guidance, this is either low or no risk,” the official said. “You can find in the guidance itself — that being within six feet for a prolonged period of time with a lab confirmed coronavirus patient. OK, well we can all agree that didn’t happen,” he said. A Reuters correspondent traveled with Pompeo on his plane to Afghanistan and Doha. Throughout the 51-hour trip, both the secretary and his staff flew on helicopters, spent time in rooms with many officials, and posed with U.S. personnel for photographers in settings where it was impossible to practice a full social distancing. The official did not specifically address whether all those who met Pompeo in Qatar had been screened but said it was a “very controlled environment.”  
 
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Fake news about the coronavirus can do real harm. Polygraph.info is spotlighting fact-checks from many sources here​.Daily DebunkChain message: “[S]pecial military helicopters will spray pesticide against the Corona virus in the skies all over the country.”Verdict: FalseSee more dubious chain messages at Politifact.​ Social Media Disinfo​Coronavirus Scam Test Warning on FacebookClaim circulating on social media: Scammers pretending to be from the Red Cross are going door-to-door and offering coronavirus tests and then charging the residents money or even robbing them.Verdict: Partly FalseRead the full story: “Partly false claim: People are offering scam door-to-door coronavirus tests to rob people” — Reuters​Factual Reads on Coronavirus​​Does Everyone Over 60 Need to Take the Same Coronavirus Precautions?
Are precautions of the sort the CDC has endorsed really necessary, even in areas where the new coronavirus doesn’t yet appear to be circulating widely? What about disease-free adults in their 60s and 70s?
— Kaiser Health News, March 24
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Liberty University, a private evangelical Christian school in the southeastern U.S. state of Virginia, has invited students back to campus this week, despite the fast-growing coronavirus pandemic.University President Jerry Falwell Jr. invited the school’s 5,000 students back to campus from spring break and ordered faculty to continue to work on campus, even as most classes move online. Falwell said students would complete their coursework online instead of in classrooms.University spokesman Scott Lamb said about 1,100 students had returned to campus by Tuesday morning.The move to return students to the Lynchburg campus seems to ignore social distancing guidelines from worldwide health officials and the state of Virginia. Moreover, the World Health Organization said Tuesday the U.S. is likely to soon become the world epicenter of the outbreak.”14.4 percent of everyone in Lynchburg — about 12,000 people — is over the age of 65, if you want a sense of how many people Jerry Falwell Jr. is putting at risk,” tweeted Jamelle Bouie, a New York Times columnist based in Charlottesville, Va.14.4 percent of everyone in Lynchburg — about 12,000 people — is over the age of 65, if you want a sense of how many people Jerry Falwell Jr. is putting at risk. https://t.co/b1UisuEELk
— b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) March 24, 2020The university said it is providing safe accommodations to students and employees and taking additional steps to ensure their good health.But Lynchburg city officials said they are receiving complaints about Falwell’s decisions.“People are saying, ‘This terrible. What can you do?’” City Manager Bonnie Svrcek said.“We could not be more disappointed in the action that Jerry took in telling students they could come back and take their online classes on campus,” Svrcek added.Falwell’s decision is at odds with many colleges and universities across the U.S. and the world that closed their campuses to help slow the spread of COVID-19. 
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U.S. President Donald Trump wants Americans to return to work as soon as possible while continuing to maintain a safe distance from each other to avoid spreading the COVID-19 disease, a combination that health experts warn may not be compatible.   “Our people want to return to work,” Trump said in a Tuesday morning tweet. “They will practice Social Distancing and all else, and Seniors will be watched over protectively & lovingly. We can do two things together. THE CURE CANNOT BE WORSE (by far) THAN THE PROBLEM!” Our people want to return to work. They will practice Social Distancing and all else, and Seniors will be watched over protectively & lovingly. We can do two things together. THE CURE CANNOT BE WORSE (by far) THAN THE PROBLEM! Congress MUST ACT NOW. We will come back strong!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2020  The tweet echoes comments Trump made to reporters the previous evening in the White House briefing room.    “Our country wasn’t meant to be shut down,” said the president on Monday.      Trump, at the daily media briefing by the White House coronavirus task force, said a large team is working on what the next steps will be in order to end the virtual shutdown of the world’s largest economy.      At a certain point, the country needs “to get open, get moving,” Trump stated, making it clear he is weighing the risk from the COVID-19 pandemic against the economic damage being done to the country from the shutdown of most businesses.       Coronavirus death toll
Deaths as a result of an extended economic crisis could exceed those caused by the virus in the United States, according to the president who stated that the mortality rate for the coronavirus is less than 1% – much lower than had been anticipated.       “America will again and soon be open for business,” said Trump, explaining it will not be the three-to-four-month time frame predicted by some who warn the dire threat from the virus will not recede quickly.       The physicians, if they had their way, would “shut down the entire world,” the president asserted.       Last Monday Trump helped introduce a 15-day plan from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to try to stem the rise of coronavirus cases by encouraging most people to stay home. The campaign is scheduled to end  March 31, but many expect it to be extended.         Trump said governors will “have a lot of leeway if we open up.”    His top economic advisor, Larry Kudlow, on Tuesday, told reporters there are zones of the country “where the virus is less prevalent. Things are safe. We’re not abandoning the health professionals’ advice, but there is a clamor to try to reopen the economy.”  ‘I am petrified’ health expert tells VOA    The executive director of the Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University’s school of medicine, Dr. Robert Murphy, told VOA he hopes social distancing recommendations will not be relaxed prematurely out of concern for the U.S. economy.         “I am petrified. Hopefully the states will ignore these directives,” said Murphy, a professor of medicine and biomedical engineering.       Such action would be a very sad way “to test Darwinian Law,” added Murphy,   A House member from Trump’s Republican party is among the politicians cautioning against relaxing social distancing.   “There will be no normally functioning economy if our hospitals are overwhelmed and thousands of Americans of all ages, including our doctors and nurses, lay dying because we have failed t do what’s necessary to stop the virus,” tweeted Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney.  
 There will be no normally functioning economy if our hospitals are overwhelmed and thousands of Americans of all ages, including our doctors and nurses, lay dying because we have failed to do what’s necessary to stop the virus. https://t.co/AchwfXtuLi— Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) March 24, 2020The governor of New York, the hardest hit state in the country by the coronavirus outbreak, is also criticizing the president’s suggestion. “No American is going say accelerate the economy at the cost of human life,” Andrew Cuomo said at his daily coronavirus briefing on Tuesday. “Don’t make us choose between a smart health strategy and a smart economic strategy.” 
  The focus, Cuomo added, should be “on the looming wave of cases” of COVID-19 patients coming in about two weeks. Several U.S. states announced new restrictions Monday, boosting the number of people under stay-at-home orders to about one-third of the population.      Surveys have found, in general, Republicans — compared with Democrats — taking the threat from the pandemic less seriously and more inclined to believe the media are hyping the coronavirus outbreak. 
  The World Health Organization is warning that the United States could be the next epicenter for the global coronavirus pandemic, noting 40 percent of new cases recorded around the world during the previous 24 hours were from the United States.   “They have a very large outbreak and an outbreak that is increasing in intensity,” a WHO spokesperson, Margaret Harris, said on Tuesday.     The United States has the third-highest number of COVID-19 cases of any country after China and Italy, with at least 46,000 people confirmed to have been infected and about 600 dead.      
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Renowned jazz man Manu Dibango, to many the beloved “Papy Groove” who served as an inspiration and pioneer in his art, died on Tuesday with the coronavirus, his official Facebook page announced. He was 86. The saxophonist who inspired what is known as “world music” was recently hospitalized with an illness “linked to COVID-19,” his official Facebook page said last Wednesday, adding that he was “resting well and calmly recovering.” The announcement did not say where he had been hospitalized, but Dibango, who was born in Cameroon, was known to live in France. “He can’t wait to meet you again,” the earlier message said. That was not to be. The artist inspired “world music” in the 1970s with the song “Soul Makossa.” Funeral services were to be “held in strict privacy” followed by a tribute “when possible,” Tuesday’s announcement said. Funerals in France have been limited to 20 people who are in the closest circle of the deceased because of a lockdown to try to slow the spread of COVID-19.  
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The coronavirus pandemic and the nation’s crashing economy are scrambling the themes both major political parties thought would carry them to victory in November for control of the White House and Congress.
Shattered, certainly for now, is President Donald Trump’s ability to tout a brawny economy and record stock market prices as the predicate for his reelection. The GOP could face a hard time calling Democratic candidates socialists with a straight face as Congress works on a bipartisan, near $2 trillion rescue package  that would essentially have government drive the economy indefinitely.
Democrats say they’re the party that will protect people’s health care, but it’s unclear that would be heard by people focused mostly on when life will return to normal. And by pounding away at Trump’s competence, they’d risk alienating voters who, during a stressful time, want policymakers to produce solutions, not partisan wrangling.
“We’re in the middle of a hurricane. We don’t know all the political consequences. We don’t know if it’s a Cat 1 or a Cat 5,” said GOP consultant Matt Mackowiak, referring to categories used to express the strength of storms.  
Trump has seized public attention with almost daily briefings about the government’s response to the pandemic. That’s left former Vice President Joe Biden, the likely Democratic presidential nominee, and his party’s congressional candidates searching for ways to break into the news cycle.  
Clearly, campaign themes are changing.  
Five political advertisers had run ads mentioning the coronavirus through last week, according to Advertising Analytics, a firm that tracks ad data. That included one in Florida, in Spanish, by Biden, and two by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.  
“In times like this, we must work together,” Collins, who faces a competitive November reelection in a state that prizes independence, tells the camera.  
More are coming.
Priorities USA, the largest outside Democratic political organization, planned to start ads Tuesday in election battlegrounds Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The spot plays Trump’s own words, including, “We have it totally under control,” as a bar graph displays the skyrocketing number of coronavirus cases.
The spot ends as “AMERICA NEEDS A LEADER WE CAN TRUST” is displayed against a black background.  
GOP operatives say Republican candidates must emphasize rallying behind the effort to battle the twin crises.
“The message is, ‘We all need to come together, support the president and vice president and do all we can to fight the virus,'” Republican strategist John Feehery said. “Throw everything else out the window.”  
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee provided a memo last week offering guidance to its candidates.
“Remind followers through your actions that you take this seriously and would be a calm voice through crisis,” the House Democratic political arm said in the guidance obtained by The Associated Press.
It urged candidates to discuss the significance of health care access and affordability — issues that helped the party capture House control in 2018. It suggested asking voters, “How are you doing?” and “Do you need anything” during phone calls.
Among the first to test the new political world will be two rivals for an open seat in a narrowly divided House district in Los Angeles’ northern suburbs.
Republican Mike Garcia and Democrat Christy Smith face a special election in May, when voters seem certain to still be focused on the virus and the battered economy. As elsewhere, efforts to curb the infection’s spread means campaign phone calls and digital communications are replacing public events.
Both concede it’s hard to get people’s attention, but each said they are already sharpening their appeals to voters.
During tough times, people “remember what the important things are, and that’s God, country and family,” Garcia, a Trump supporter and former Navy fighter pilot, said in an interview. “We’re all on the same team.”
“Patriotism alone doesn’t set food on people’s tables,” said Smith, a state assemblywoman. She said that Trump’s virus response has put the U.S. “woefully behind” the infection and that it’s time for “a reckoning on what effective government looks like.”  
Both parties say it’s too early to know if the virus will be contained and the economy resuscitated by the time voters focus on the fall campaigns — and whether they’ll blame or laud Trump and the GOP for the outcome.  
Either way, Trump is casting himself as a wartime president in hopes of garnering the broad public support that usually goes to national leaders in times of crisis.  
His reelection campaign has been using the emergencies in fundraising appeals that offer supporters autographed “Keep America Great” hats. “Our country is facing unprecedented times right now and President Trump is working around the clock to keep our Nation and its citizens safe,” his emails say.
Biden used a fundraiser, held by phone, to swipe at Trump, who’s made numerous false statements about the virus, including on its seriousness and the availability of tests.
“We need to tell the American people the truth, the unvarnished truth,” Biden said.  
“Look what we have in the White House right now,” said Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill., using that same theme. Bustos, who heads House Democrats’ campaign arm, cited Trump’s lashing out at reporters during new briefings and said, “We all look for leaders to lead in a crisis.”  
Democrats are also using the virus’ spread to reprise their call for better health care.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats marked Monday’s 10th anniversary of President Barack Obama signing his health care overhaul into law. “We couldn’t need it more” than during this pandemic, Pelosi told reporters about the statute. She blamed Trump for making “mistake after mistake after mistake after mistake” in handling the outbreak.  
And on the Senate floor Monday, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., underscored something both parties will be looking for: ways to taint the other for using the life-altering crises to seek political gain.  
McConnell accused Democrats of viewing the chamber’s blocked economic bill as “a juicy political opportunity” and trying to stuff it with environmental requirements and other priorities.  
“Are you kidding me? This is the moment to debate new regulations that have nothing to do with this crisis? That’s what they’re up to over there,” he said.  
Still, Republicans concede the party faces a huge downside should the virus remain uncontrolled.
“If we become Italy,” said the consultant Mackowiak, citing the country with the highest death toll so far, “there’s no question the party in power would pay a political price for that. Absolutely no question. 
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The American Cancer Society says one in nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime and one in 41 will die from it. Several news studies offer hope that these number could decrease with early and accurate diagnosis.  A new study based on a randomized controlled trial on 300 prostate cancer patients in Australia has found that a molecular imaging technique is more accurate than conventional medical imaging that uses CT (computed tomography) and bone scan.  Prostate cancer is treated by surgery to remove the prostate or by intensive radiotherapy that targets the tumor.  Doctors often use CT and bone scans to determine if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body. A team led by Professor Michael Hofman conducted trials on prostate cancer patients in 10 hospitals in Australia using the prostate-specific membrane antigen PET-CT scan.  “We inject a radio-active small molecule intravenously. It finds its way to prostate cancer cells and we then image the whole body on a positron emission tomography scanner, i.e. PET (positron emission tomography) scanner and this enables us to visualize the distribution of disease spread with striking tumor-to-background contrast,” said Hofman. The trials showed that prostate-specific membrane antigen PET-CT scan had a 27% greater accuracy than that of conventional imaging, which proved to have lower sensitivity.  That means the new imaging has 92% accuracy compared to 65% of a CT bone scan. A follow-up trial conducted after six months confirmed the initial results. The study, published in The Lancet medical journal, says that “the primary outcome was accuracy of first-line imaging for identifying either pelvic nodal or distant-metastatic disease.”   Hofman’s research team recommends the use of new scans in routine clinical practice instead of the current CT and bone scans for better accuracy. They say a more accurate imagery can help doctors determine whether to use targeted treatment or more advanced treatment for the whole body. A more accurate diagnosis cuts the need for repeated radio-active testing and thus cuts a patient’s exposure to harmful radiation. It also is likely to reduce the number of cancer relapse cases.  Hereditary Study of Prostate Cancer Another study may help identify men who are more likely to get prostate cancer than others. Researchers at the Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, have identified haplotypes, ancestral fragments of DNA, associated with hereditary prostate cancer.  They compared genetic data of two groups of men with prostate cancer, one with a strong family history of the disease and another without a family history of prostate cancer.  They analyzed the haplotypes of 2,300 men at a location of chromosome 8.  The Vanderbilt team has earlier found that a gene on chromosome 8 is particularly associated with prostate cancer susceptibility. “We’ve taken a comprehensive shotgun approach to investigate data at this location and have been able to deconstruct how it contributes to risk, including which of the haplotypes impact age of onset and also aggressiveness,” said researcher Jeffrey R. Smith. The study, published in Nature Communications, says roughly 9% of prostate cancer is linked to heritability. But one mutation increased risk as much as 22-fold. Another mutation increased risk 4-fold, and was observed even among men without a strong family history. The study is believed to be the first to identify haplotypes comprehensively from all associated genetic variants.  Vanderbilt researchers earlier found that a mutation in a particular gene predisposes men of European descent to prostate cancer.  They found the mutation to be rare but carrying an 8% risk of prostate cancer among those who inherit it.  Finding Active Cancer                                                           Another new study says that a test that checks for prostate cancer DNA in blood could provide the earliest evidence that prostate cancer is active. The study by researchers at Britain’s University College London Cancer Institute says that prostate cancer leaves a detectable “fingerprint” in blood. “This test could be the first to tell us cancer has gotten into blood before the spread is large enough to see on imaging,” said Mark Emberton, dean of the faculty of medical sciences. “This could allow targeting of treatment for men at the highest risk of prostate cancer spread.” The study published earlier this month in The Journal of Clinical Investigation says the finding could help doctors monitor tumor behavior, see if it has spread and choose the best treatment.  The technique is still being tested on patients to determine if it can complement or replace the current prostate-specific antigen test. Less Aggressive vs. More Aggressive Scientists at the University of East Anglia (UEA) say they have discovered a method to distinguish less aggressive from more aggressive forms of prostate cancer that eventually cause a patient’s death. The findings are meant to help doctors avoid perhaps unnecessary and harmful treatment for less aggressive types of cancer.  The new study shows how the number of aggressive cells in a tumor sample defines how quickly the disease will progress and spread. The study also reveals three new subtypes of prostate cancer that could be used to stratify patients for different treatments. “Our aim is to use more sophisticated analytical approaches to de-convolute the structure of prostate cancer transcriptome data, providing novel clinically actionable information for this disease,” said the team.  Lead researcher Colin Cooper said: “Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in Britain. It usually develops slowly, and the majority of cancers will not require treatment in a man’s lifetime. However, doctors struggle to predict which tumors will become aggressive, making it hard to decide on treatment for many men.” In the United States prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer in men after skin cancer.  The American Cancer Society says the chance of having prostate cancer rises rapidly after the age of 50 and that affects different races differently. It develops more often in African-American men and less often in Asian-American and Latino men. It says prostate cancer seems to run in some families and that several inherited gene changes (mutations) seem to raise prostate cancer risk. The new studies promise to help improve and individualize treatment of prostate cancer and save lives. 
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The long-awaited trial of a former U.S. Marine facing charges of espionage got under way in Moscow on Monday — with U.S. officials accusing Russia of providing no evidence in a spy case that has proved an added irritant to already troubled relations between the two countries.  Paul Whelan, 50, was arrested by FSB security agents in late December 2018 after allegedly accepting classified materials on a computer thumb drive in a central Moscow hotel.  Whelan has repeatedly denied those charges, insisting he was in Moscow for a friend’s wedding and had accepted the drive from a Russian acquaintance without ever knowing or viewing its contents. The former Marine, who in addition to U.S. citizenship holds passports from the U.K., Canada and Ireland, also says he’s been mistreated and denied medical treatment while in detention — an assertion that U.S. officials have backed repeatedly and did so again Monday. U.S. Ambassador to Russia John J. Sullivan joined his counterparts from the U.K. and Ireland at the courtroom Monday, where the presiding judge allowed them to speak with Whelan briefly before closing the hearing to the public — a standard practice in Russian-led “top secret” espionage cases. “It’s a sad day for me as an American and a U.S. ambassador, in these circumstances, to come and see a citizen of my country held in such circumstances, with serious health problems unaddressed, with no evidence that’s been produced to justify his incarceration for well over a year, and his inability to communicate with his family despite repeated requests by him and by me to the Russian government,” said Sullivan, in a statement afterward to the press. “I am hoping that, as this process moves forward, we see a fair and transparent judicial process,” Sullivan added. “Every person, every citizen, of every country in the world, deserves that.” In turn, Russia’s foreign ministry has accused Whelan of feigning illness — part of what the ministry says is Whelan’s playbook training as a U.S. intelligence officer after being caught “red-handed” by Russia’s security services. If convicted on existing charges, Whelan faces the possibility of 10-20 years in prison.U.S. ambassador to Russia John Sullivan speaks with journalists after his meeting with Paul Whelan, a U.S. national arrested and accused of espionage, outside a detention centre in Moscow, Russia January 30, 2020.COVID-19, witnesses, and ‘a goat rodeo’ The Whelan trial proved one of the rare court proceedings currently in session in Russia, after the country’s high court postponed most judicial work last week out of fear of the spread of the coronavirus. Whelan’s Russian lawyers, Olga Karla and Vladimir Zherebenkov, said that — barring unforeseen delays because of the contagion — the closed trial would last about a month in which they promised to mount a vigorous defense. Speaking to reporters, Zherebenkov said he planned to call at least a dozen witnesses, all of them Russians with whom Whelan had been in contact during multiple visits to the Russian Federation in recent years. Whelan’s legal team also indicated they planned to call embassy officials to the stand, a move they assured would prove Whelan’s innocence of the spy charges. “We’ll interrogate the embassies to prove that Whelan physically could not be an agent as a citizen of four different countries,” said Zherebenkov, in comments carried by the Interfax News Agency. “It’s simply not possible,” he added. Yet, throughout the run-up to Monday’s hearing, Zherebenkov has repeatedly acknowledged that politics may play a larger role than material evidence in resolving the case. Last December, the lawyer publicly floated the idea of including Whelan in a wider prisoner swap between Russia and the West. “Paul is a citizen of four countries. None of them has asked to organize his exchange yet,” noted Zherebenkov before pleading: “Take the initiative gentlemen!” Meanwhile, Whelan has called on U.S. President Donald Trump to intervene on his behalf, asking the American leader “to tweet your intentions” about a case that Whelan has colorfully labeled “the Moscow goat rodeo.” 
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The ongoing crisis in northern and central Mali and neighboring countries could spill over into the southern part of the West African country if conflicts over land and other natural resources are not addressed, warns an international peace-building group. International Alert (AI), a London-based organization that works on peace building in conflict zones, said in a report released Monday that resolving land issues must be a priority for peace-building efforts in the region. The report examines land conflicts in southern Mali and the way they are addressed by traditional authorities and the state. Exploited by extremist, criminal groups While the southern region of Mali has largely been stable, challenges such as climate change, population movement and the presence of extremist groups in north and central Mali raise concerns about new waves of violence in the region, the report said. Deep-rooted conflicts over resources could be exploited by extremist or criminal groups to exacerbate the violence taking place in northern and central Mali, said Camille Marquette, the author of the report. “What I’m looking at in this report is the level of mistrust among local communities towards the government,” Marquette told VOA. “When the state cannot provide security and governance to people, they turn to their own communities to organize themselves or try to reach out to an outside supplier of security and governance. This basically offers an operation base for radical groups,” he said. Grievances over access to land and other natural resources, including clashes between farmers and herdsmen, have been at the heart of the violence in Mali. Combined with other social, economic and political factors, such tensions have been exploited over time by armed groups, the IA’s report said. FILE – A Fulani herder leads his cattle to the landfill next to the internally displaced persons camp in Faladie, Mali, where nearly 800 IDPs have found refuge after fleeing intercommunal violence, on May 14, 2019.The insurgency in Mali began in 2012 when a separatist uprising in the northern part of the country was largely taken over by al-Qaida affiliates. Since then, thousands of civilians and military personnel have died in the conflict. Violence in central Mali also has increased since 2015, when Islamist armed groups moved from northern into central Mali. Last week, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said it has documented more than 800 civilian deaths in central Mali in attacks carried out by various ethnic militias and Islamist armed groups. Different groups, different objectives   The Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), an alliance between several jihadist groups, is the main group that is active in parts of Mali. The group has pledged allegiance to al-Qaida. The Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, an IS affiliate, is also active in Mali and other countries in the Sahel region. But experts say instability is not only attributed to violent extremism. Ethnic tensions are also a source of major intercommunal violence between various militias in Mali. “What we’re looking at are different armed groups and those armed groups all have different sets of interests, different objectives, different tactics and different modes of operating,” said Daniel Eizenga, a Research Fellow at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies in Washington. 
 
“Given the diversity of groups and their dynamic characteristics, it is plausible that the conflict could spread to southern Mali and other areas in the larger region,” he told VOA. Eizenga added that neighboring countries such as Burkina Faso and Niger have already felt the effects of violence in Mali.  International troops The U.N. mission in Mali has about 14,000 peacekeeping troops in Mali. In addition, France has about 4,500 troops stationed in Mali, while Paris plans to increase its military presence with 600 additional troops. FILE – Senegalese soldiers of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali, MINUSMA (United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali), patrol on foot in the streets of Gao, July 24, 2019, a day after a suicide bomb attack.The United Kingdom also has announced that 250 British troops will be deployed to Mali later this year to help fight extremism in the region. But experts believe that relying only on military options in Mali has proven ineffective. “Delivering on security in Mali means going beyond military presence. It also means investing in addressing the root causes of conflict that allow violent extremism to flourish in the first place,” analyst Marquette said, adding that, “Acting on land issues and other grievances today will help avoid the high cost of remedial action in the future.” In an effort to bring an end to the conflict, the government of Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has been seeking to begin a dialogue process, which involves potential peace talks with the main jihadist groups in Mali. 
 
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A postponement of the Tokyo Summer Olympics looks more likely after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday that holding the games in their “complete form” may become impossible because of the coronavirus outbreak. Abe told parliament Monday that the safety and security of the athletes is his highest priority, while adding there are no plans to cancel the games outright. The International Olympic Committee says it will hold a month of talks before it decides whether to put off the games scheduled to open in Tokyo July 24. It says it is considering a number of scenarios. “This step will allow better visibility of the rapidly changing development of the health situation around the world and in Japan. It will serve as the basis for the best decision in the interests of the athletes and everyone else involved,” the IOC statement said. The IOC has already ruled out canceling the games saying that “would not solve any of the problems or help anybody.”  Tokyo Olympic organizing president Yoshiro Mori said Monday he thinks it is a good idea for the committee to take its time before making any decisions.   The IOC is under pressure from a number of national committees to at least put off the games. The Australian, German, and Canadian Olympic committees are recommending a one-year postponement. Canada and Norway both say they will not send athletes to Tokyo if the Summer Games and the Paralympics are both held on time.  USA Gymnastics President Li Li Leung says she is worried that if the games are held in July, the athletes may not have enough time to properly train. She noted that gyms in many states have been shut down. The head of Portugal’s committee says he is also concerned that another month of uncertainty will also leave Portuguese athletes undertrained because of restrictions caused by the coronavirus. 
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After weeks of reporting that the country was free of the coronavirus, the Syrian government is saying that it has experienced its first case. Other unconfirmed reports, however, put the figure much higher.Responding to world efforts to halt the spread of the coronavirus, the Syrian government has decided to react more forcefully, disinfecting public squares, buildings and Damascus’ iconic Hamidiya closed market.Health Minister Nizar Yazigi told state TV late Sunday that Syria has discovered its first confirmed case of the virus in a 20 year-old woman arriving from abroad.He said that she was tested because she was arriving from a place that has suffered an outbreak of the virus and showed signs of a fever even though she was not sick. He said she is being quarantined for 14 days and will be monitored every four days.Rami Abdel Rahman of the Britain-based opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told Arab media last week that the Syrian government is using a number of hospitals to quarantine suspected coronavirus cases among Iranian and Iraqi militia fighters, in both Damascus and Deir ez Zor. VOA could not independently confirm the claim.Reacting to the growing health crisis, Syria’s council of ministers voted Sunday to stop all intercity public transport and close shopping malls and public markets, with the exception of pharmacies and supermarkets.Hussein Makhlouf, minister of local government, told journalists that the government was taking strong measures to stop the spread of the virus.He said that the council of ministers has ordered the halt of all inter-city public transportation as of 8 p.m. Monday along with the closure of non-essential businesses and social centers.A man walks near empty shops as Syria confirmed its first case of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Damascus, March 23, 2020.Prime Minister Imad Khamis indicated that the government had put in place a six-month plan to deal with the virus, appointing public health teams to combat its spread in each province of the country.Syria also closed all its land border crossings with Lebanon as of midday Monday, except for commercial vehicles and ordered that drivers be tested for the virus.The government suspended the printing of all newspapers and magazines to prevent the potential spread of the virus on paper. The Syrian information ministry insisted, however, that all publications would continue to appear online.World Health Organization envoy Na’ama Sa’id Abed told Reuters there was a serious risk of the virus spreading to displaced Syrians living in camps and on the fringes of cities.Some residents of Damascus told Syrian media that they were “not worried about the spread of the virus,” while several others joked that they were still “taking their precautions” by keeping a face mask with them “if needed.” 
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Daily Debunk”Italy has decided NOT to treat their elderly for this virus. That, my friends, is socialized healthcare.”– Claim made in a March 14, 2020 Facebook postVerdict: Mostly FalseRead the full story at: WRAL.com/Politifact Social Media Disinfo​Dr. Oz delivers message to Trump, coronavirus task force: ‘Get us these pills’https://t.co/hko8ihi08J— cjc (@remi_ritz) March 23, 2020Claim circulating on social media: A combination of the antimalarial hydroxychloroquine and the antibiotic azithromycin​ is key to combating COVID-19.Verdict: MisleadingRead the full story: “Surgeon General Immediately Warns Views Against Trying Malaria Drug Treatment for Coronavirus after Dr. Oz Tels Fox Viewers He’s Testing It” — Newsweek Factual Reads on Coronavirus​​Lessons from Past Outbreaks Could Help Fight the Coronavirus Pandemic
The 1918 influenza pandemic and 2002–2003 SARS outbreak suggest social distancing measures, communication and international cooperation are the most effective methods to slow COVID-19.
— Scientific American, March 23Why this Nobel laureate predicts a quicker coronavirus recovery: ‘We’re going to be fine’
While many epidemiologists are warning of months, or even years, of massive social disruption and millions of deaths, Stanford’s Michael Levitt says the data simply don’t support such a dire scenario — especially in areas where reasonable social distancing measures are in place.
— Los Angeles Times/Yahoo News, March 22Can’t Get Tested? Maybe You’re in the Wrong Country​.​
Scientists say the chasm between the testing haves and have-nots reflects politics, public health strategies and, in some cases, blunders​.
— New York Times, March 20
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