Trump rally called ‘dangerous move’ in age of coronavirus
After months away from the campaign trail, President Trump plans to rally his supporters this coming Saturday for the first time since most of the country was shuttered by the coronavirus. Trump will head to Tulsa, Oklahoma – a state that has seen relatively few Covid19 cases.
But health experts question the decision, citing the danger of infection spreading among the crowd and sparking outbreaks when people return to their homes.
Dr Ashish Jha, director of Harvard’s Global Health Institute, called the upcoming Trump rally “an extraordinarily dangerous move for the people participating and the people who may know them and love them and see them afterwards”.
White House not concerned about a second coronavirus wave
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Friday the administration of US President Donald Trump is not concerned about a second wave of coronavirus cases, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Kudlow, director of the White House National Economic Council, made his remarks in a private virtual meeting for clients of investment bank Evercore Inc, the Journal reported, citing a recording reviewed by the newspaper.
“Basically, the story is there have been some flare-ups of the virus, very controllable,” Kudlow was quoted by the newspaper as saying. It said his appearance in the closed meeting was approved by ethics lawyers.
Oman forms committee to tackle economic effect of coronavirus
The sultan of Oman has ordered the formation of a committee to deal with the economic effect of the coronavirus pandemic, a government media office statement said.
Oman, a small oil producer relative to its Gulf neighbours, has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and low oil prices. The committee, headed by the interior minister, will study the speedy return of economic activities, it said
Austria plans investment subsidy, tax breaks for coronavirus-hit firms
Austria plans extra investment subsidies and tax breaks to help companies hit by the coronavirus pandemic, Economy Minister Margarete Schramboeck said.
Companies that commit to investments in the next six months could get 14 percent of it back as a subsidy, she told broadcaster ORF ahead of a two-day cabinet meeting on more stimulus measures.
This could comprise a basic subsidy of 7 percent and additional support for spending on things like digitalisation, the life sciences and health care, she said, adding a 20 percent subsidy in cash would be “ideal”.
Delhi coronavirus fears mount as hospital beds run out
Ashwani Jain succumbed to Covid19 in an ambulance as his family pleaded with several hospitals to take him in. He was the latest victim of the pandemic sweeping through the Indian capital and exposing a deadly shortage of hospital beds.
“They don’t care whether we live or die,” said his 20-year-old daughter Kashish, whose uncle, Abhishek, sat with Ashwani in the back of the vehicle on its desperate journey across New Delhi.
“It won’t matter to them but I have lost my father, he was the world to me,” she said, tears welling up as she showed a photo of him.
All of the hospitals the 45-year-old businessman’s family tried refused to admit Ashwani, even though an app set up by the city government indicated that Covid19 beds were free, Abhishek told the AFP news agency.
With surging infections highlighting the precarious state of the Indian healthcare system, the death of Jain and others like him have heightened anxiety in New Delhi over the growing threat.
Beijing confirms eight new cases in first seven hours of June 14
Beijing city has confirmed eight new coronavirus cases in the first seven hours of June 14, a city official said.
Beijing health official Pang Xinghuo said at a second news conference on Sunday that these eight cases are all linked to Xinfadi market, a major food wholesale market in the city’s southwest Fengtai district.
Iran daily virus deaths exceed 100 for first time in two months
Iran has reported more than 100 coronavirus deaths in a single day for the first time in two months.
In televised remarks, health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari announced 107 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising the overall toll to 8,837.
An Iranian woman gives a protective face mask to a worshipper to attend the Friday prayers in Qarchak Jamee Mosque, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (Covid19).
