VOA news for Friday, June 26th, 2020
This is VOA news. Via remote I'm Tommy McNeil.
There are approximately 489,000 deaths globally from COVID-19.
In the United States that figure is more than 124,000.
The number of infections worldwide approaches 9.6 million in the US it's more than 2.4 million, and Brazil easily has the third highest number of deaths and infections.
The World Health Organization says several European countries have seen a resurgence of COVID-19 cases for the first time in months.
WHO Regional Director Dr. Hahn's Kluge says in a virtual briefing, an increase in transmission has led to the resurgence of the cases and 11 of the country's accelerated transmissions has led to a very significant resurgence that if left unchecked will push health systems to the brink once again in Europe he said.
Nearly 20,000 new cases are being reported in the WHO’s European region which includes 54 countries and 7 territories across Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia.
Privacy concerns in a digital gap were in focus as the world looks at contact tracing to help curb the spread of the virus.
Contact tracing has been used for decades to control the spread of infectious diseases.
The basic idea is simple.
You track down infected people then find everyone who has been near them and encourage those people to stay home until it's clear they are not sick.
As parts of the world start opening up after months of lockdown technologists have and health officials are racing to develop smartphone apps to trace who's been in contact with carriers of the novel coronavirus.
But privacy questions have been raised on how they work.
The WHO said compounding this privacy concerns is the reality of the digital gap that its presence in countries around the world.
It also said it's looking into why meat processing plants around the world are infection hotspots.
This is VOA news.
Mexico has pushed past 25,000 reported coronavirus deaths and 200,000 confirmed cases.
And the Treasury Secretary says that he has tested positive.
Arturo Herrera said that he has only minor symptoms and will self isolate while working from home.
It is unclear how recently he was in close contact with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who refuses to use a face mask and has resumed public tours across Mexico.
Herrera is the country's highest-ranking cabinet member to be infected so far.
The US House of Representatives approved the controversial Democratic police reform bill Thursday, sending the measure to the US Senate despite opposition from President Trump and his Republican allies in Congress.
The Democratic controlled House voted to 236 to 181, roughly along party lines, to adopt that legislation, one month to the day after George Floyd's death in Minneapolis police custody sparked weeks of worldwide protest over police brutality, especially against African Americans.
The Democratic bill which mandates concrete changes of law and policy to rein in police misconduct is unlikely to pass in its current form, in the Republican-led Senate, where Democrats blocked a Republican reform measure on Wednesday.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has come under severe criticism for saying in a nationally televised speech to the parliament that the al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden had been martyred. Khan was highlighted foreign or has highlighted foreign policy gains of his nearly two year government and particularly improved ties with the United States and under President Donald Trump.
Martyrs are greatly revered in Islam for sacrificing themselves, generally in the fight to uphold their religion.
Bin Ladin as head of al Qaeda oversaw the September 11th, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon that killed nearly 3000 people.
The Eiffel Tower, one of France's most iconic landmarks, reopened for the first time Thursday after it was forced to close its doors for months due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Eiffel Tower is one of the few Parisian sites permitting visitors but other tourist attractions like the museum will remain closed until July 6.
To protect visitors elevators to the tower three observation deck scaling 324 meters are closed and only two of the three decks are open.
Remaining deck as well as the elevators are expected to open in later summer months.
And as well, France was hit badly by the virus, recording 29,731 deaths and more than 161,000 confirmed cases as President Macron
faced heavy criticism regarding his government's management of the outbreak.
Via remote, I'm Tommy McNeil VOA news.