|
 The
tug-of-war over who gets to reopen the world's largest economy -
President Donald Trump or state governors - enters its next round on
Thursday as Trump announces what he calls "new guidelines" for the
move.
The U.S. coronavirus death toll - the highest in the world - surged
past 30,000 on Wednesday after doubling in a week, but Trump
believes the country has passed the peak on new cases.
Many do not agree - and are preparing to resist. New York state
government sources told Reuters that Governor Andrew Cuomo has hired
McKinsey consultants to develop a strategy for the safe economic
reopening of the region according to its own, science-based
timetable.
A French standoff for Amazon
Tensions between economic and health imperatives are also coming to
a head in France where Amazon closed six warehouses on Thursday
until at least April 20 after it clashed with unions over safety
measures.
The world's largest online retailer is facing mounting scrutiny on
both sides of the Atlantic as it juggles a surge in online orders
and employees' safety.
So far France is the only country where it has shut down all of its
so-called fulfilment centres after unions complained that they were
still too crowded and filed a legal challenge. There is no clarity
yet on when they will reopen.
Homicide charge over COVID-19
The pandemic has raised a series of as yet mostly unanswered
questions about who if anyone bears legal responsibility for helping
its spread.
Now India has charged the chief of a Muslim seminary with culpable
homicide for holding a gathering last month that authorities say led
to a big jump in infections.
[to top of second column] |
The seminary is the headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat group, one of the
world's biggest Sunni Muslim proselytising organisations. It promotes a pure
form of Islam and has followers in more than 80 countries.
Testing through sewage
Australian researchers said on Thursday they expect to roll out within weeks a
programme of testing raw sewage to detect the presence of the coronavirus and
pinpoint communities at risk. A successful pilot project was carried out in
Queensland state.
On a wide scale, sewage sampling can gauge the approximate number of people
infected in an area without the need to test every individual, the CSIRO
national science agency said.
The project makes use of an existing system in Australia under which crime
agencies monitor the wastewater of about 57% of the population to detect the
presence of illicit drugs.
Captain Tom's $15 million garden stroll
Feeling pressure to be productive while stuck at home?
Well, you can't beat Tom Moore. The 99-year-old British war veteran has raised
more than 12 million pounds ($15 million) for his country's health service by
walking the 25 metres around his garden 100 times, days before his 100th
birthday on April 30.
The retired army captain has used a rollator walking frame since breaking a hip
and wanted to raise the money to thank the health service for the care he had
received.
(Compiled by Mark John and Karishma Singh; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
[© 2020 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2020 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |
