(2020-05-16). Air traffic won't return to pre-pandemic levels until 2023 — IATA. rt.com 
Demand for air travel has plunged more than 90 percent in Europe and the United States since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said. | It warned that passenger traffic won't rebound to pre-crisis levels until at least 2023, noting that recovery will be even slower if lockdowns and travel restrictions are extended. | "We are asking governments to have a phased approach to restart the industry and to fly again," Alexandre de Juniac, the IATA's director general and CEO, told CNBC, raising hopes that some flying will resume by summer. | According to him, the…
(2020-05-16). Italy to lift international and domestic travel restrictions in June. rt.com 
Italy will allow international travel, as well as transit between the country's regions, from June 3, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on Saturday. | The authorities, however, have not ruled out curbing travel again in some areas — but only in the event that there is a new spike in infections. | The European state, one of the hardest-hit by the coronavirus pandemic, has begun to slowly ease restrictions that were put in place to stop the spread of the illness following a steady decline in the number of new cases recently. | Factories and parks opened in early May, while shops and restaurants are se…
(2020-05-16). POLAND would gladly host American nukes if Germany refuses, US envoy claims, fanning 'Cuban missile crisis 2.0'. rt.com 
As the US ambassador to Germany — and acting spy chief — tried persuading Berlin to keep hosting US nuclear weapons, his colleague in Warsaw suggested Poland would be willing to take them instead, an act sure to provoke Moscow. | "If Germany wants to diminish nuclear capability and weaken NATO, perhaps Poland — which pays its fair share, understands the risks, and is on NATO's eastern flank — could house the capabilities here," Ambassador Georgette Mosbacher tweeted on Friday. | If Germany wants to diminish nuclear capability and weaken NATO, perhaps Poland – which pays its fair share, un…
(2020-05-16). 'They used to be Vikings': Norwegian PM & ministers earn praise & ridicule for festive dance video. rt.com 
Norway's prime minister and members of her cabinet have been roasted in a pyre of internet mockery after performing a creative dance routine to mark the country's national day. | Prime Minister Erna Solberg and more than a dozen government ministers agreed to dance to a popular children's song as a lighthearted tribute to the country's independence day, which is celebrated on May 17. The routine was filmed for a children's television network, local media reported. | In the clip, Solberg leads her cabinet in hand waving, hip thrusting and flag waving — with some ministers clearly showing more enthusiasm th…
(2020-05-16). In major gaffe, US envoy MISTAKES Holocaust victims for Crimean Tatars… and he is NOT the first to do it. rt.com 
A top US diplomat was left red-faced after using a picture of a Jewish ghetto in Poland as part of his post on the 1944 deportation of Crimean Tatars, a blunder described as "disgusting" and which also drew ridicule on him.
(2020-05-16). 'We surrender!' Roscosmos chief taunts Trump for bragging about 'super-duper' US missile. rt.com 
The head of Russia's space agency, Dmitry Rogozin, fired off a tongue-in-cheek tweet in response to Donald Trump's brag about the uber-powerful missile that he alleges leaves Russian or Chinese analogues far behind. | While unveiling the flag of the Space Force in the Oval Office on Friday, US President Donald Trump made some headline-grabbing remarks. | "We have no choice. We have to do it, with the adversaries we have out there…I call it the super-duper missile, and I heard the other night [it's] 17 times faster than what they have right now," Trump bragged. | The US president didn't give away a single clu…
(2020-05-16). Moscow hits lowest daily Covid-19 cases mark since early May, with 3,505 infections recorded. rt.com 
The Russian capital, which accounts for a half of all Covid-19 cases and deaths in the country, has reported the lowest new daily infections number since early May. | Some 3,505 new Covid-19 cases were confirmed in Moscow on Saturday. This has become the minimum daily rate in the city since the beginning of May, the capital's operational headquarters for monitoring the pandemic reported. | The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the capital has now reached 138,969. According to the officials, in the third decade of April, an average of 2,700 to 2,800 cases were recorded every day in Moscow. As the t…
(2020-05-16). Russia's biggest automaker to jump-start production next week. rt.com 
Major Russian car manufacturer AvtoVAZ has announced that after more than a two-week shutdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic it will resume production on May 18. | "Due to the virus situation, work will be organized according to a safe schedule to avoid crowds of people in transport and at checkpoints. The start of shifts on the assembly lines and office staff work schedules will be timed," the company said. Starting from June 29, AvtoVAZ will switch over to a four-day work week. | Production of cars at AvtoVAZ was suspended from April 29 due to the spread of coronavirus infection in Russia, which led to a drop…
(2020-05-16). The Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic: The Real Danger is "Agenda ID2020" globalresearch.ca WHO has most likely received orders from "above", from those people who also manage Trump and the "leaders" (sic) of the EU, European Union. The final decision to go ahead NOW with COVID-19 pandemic, was taken in January 2020 at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos – behind very much closed doors.
(2020-05-16). Coronavirus crisis exposes devastating conditions in the German meat processing industry. wsws.org German slaughterhouses have become coronavirus hotspots, with hundreds of workers, most of them sub-contracted from Eastern Europe, infected with the virus.
(2020-05-16). Ecuador's pandemic — Part 1: Rightist regime fails to confront crisis. workers.org Ibarra, Ecuador May 9 — During March and April, U.S. and European media spewed out shocking images from Guayaquil, the biggest city in Ecuador and capital of the province of Guayas on the Pacific Coast. No one in the port city of 2.9 million is untouched by the death of . . . |
(2020-05-16). One dead and more than 600 Irish meat processing workers infected with coronavirus. wsws.org There are 23,956 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Republic of Ireland and 1,518 deaths—one of the highest death ratios in the world. In Northern Ireland, 4,317 people have tested positive, with 469 deaths.
(2020-05-16). As Gerry Adams' internment conviction is 'quashed', Britain's shameful past in Ireland comes back to haunt it. thecanary.co On The floodgates of similar cases could…
(2020-05-16). Should "Slavery in California" be considered in CA Reparations Bill AB 3121. indybay.org Slavery in California, a hidden secret by design, may be included in the consideration for AB 3121, the trade in human cargo is known to have source documents that predate the year 1450 Spain, Portugal, Danish governments and countless other vessels are raiding the vast African coastal villages for the express purpose of trade in human cargo for economic exploitation.
(2020-05-16). Nuclear deal opponents helpless, ignorant: Ulyanov. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, May 16 (MNA) — Russia's Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov termed the opponents of the 2015 nuclear deal, also known as Iran deal, ignorant and helpless.
(2020-05-16). Herd immunity policy in Turkey risks thousands of new deaths. wsws.org The government is launching a "normalization" policy forcing employees back to work over opposition from medical experts.
(2020-05-15). Germany in recession with economy in worst plunge since global financial crisis. rt.com 
Germany's economy shrank by 2.2 percent in the first quarter compared to the final three months of 2019, preliminary official statistics have shown. It's the biggest slump in a decade for Europe's largest economy. | Figures for the final three months of 2019 were revised to show a contraction of 0.1 percent, which means German GDP growth has been negative for two consecutive quarters, the technical definition of a recession. | The numbers are expected to get worse; Germany's Statistical Office has forecast a ten percent plunge in GDP for the second quarter, depending on the success of lifting lockdown measures…
(2020-05-15). Czech Republic to allow gatherings of up to 300 people. rt.com 
The Czech Republic will take major steps to relax its coronavirus lockdown measures from May 25, as the government seeks to jump-start the economy, health officials said on Friday. | The central European country of 10.7 million people has reported fewer than 100 new cases a day throughout May. As of Friday morning, it had recorded a total of 8,352 cases of which 5,249 have recovered. It has reported 293 deaths, Reuters said. | Indoor dining and hotel stays could resume on May 25 under strict hygiene rules, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said. "After May 25, there won't be establishments in retail which would be…
(2020-05-15). Jordan's king warns Israel of 'massive conflict' if it proceeds with West Bank annexation plans. rt.com 
Jordan's King Abdullah II warned Israel of a "massive conflict" if it proceeds with plans to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank. | Israel has vowed to annex Jewish settlements and the Jordan Valley. The move could spell the end of the long-stalled peace process by making it virtually impossible to establish a viable Palestinian state. | "Leaders who advocate a one-state solution do not understand what that would mean," Jordan's king said in an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel. | European Union foreign ministers met on Friday to discuss what action the bloc might take in response to Israe…
(2020-05-15). First child dies in France from rare Kawasaki-like disease unwisely linked to Covid-19. rt.com 
A nine-year-old boy in France has died from the mysterious Kawasaki-like disease, which some medics link to Covid-19. It's the first such case in that country, but similar child fatalities were earlier recorded in the US and UK. | The cause of the boy's death was "neurological injury related to a cardiac arrest," Fabrice Michel, head of the pediatric intensive care unit at La Timone hospital in Marseille, said. | The child was rushed to hospital with heart problems in early May. Doctors have been fighting for his life for a whole week, but the young patient passed away on Saturday. | While in hospital, the bo…
(2020-05-15). Growth figures underscore economic crisis amidst COVID. mronline.org 
Early evidence on the intensity and drivers of the COVID-induced crisis in the U.S. and Europe suggests that the official response may lengthen the recession and delay recovery…
(2020-05-15). From US to Easter Island 'everyone is in same situation': RT Documentary embarks on WORLD TOUR of Covid-19 pandemic. rt.com 
As coronavirus paralyzes the planet, RT documentary channel RTD has gone on an online world tour to learn from locals about the common dreads and unique problems caused by the pandemic faced by the world's nations. | Documentary filmmaker Natalya Karachkova was just recently tracking polar bears and Siberian tigers with her crew — but now she has found herself stuck in lockdown in her Moscow apartment. Thankfully, the internet allowed her to reach out to faraway countries, connecting with journalists and heroes of RTD's earlier films in order to feel the weakened pulse of the planet, heavily hit by the de…
(2020-05-15). 500,000 Germans apply to take part in Stuttgart lockdown protest, but police RESTRICT rally to 5,000 due to 'social distancing'. rt.com 
The city of Stuttgart has reluctantly agreed to let a demonstration go ahead on Saturday, ordering that masks be worn on public transport and people stay apart, after dissent over the lockdown swept across Germany last weekend. | Five thousand protesters are set to hit the streets of the southwestern city to protest Covid-19 restrictions. And that's only one percent of the half a million who applied to take part in the rally against Covid-19 prevention measures. | The local government has permitted only a limited number of protestors, and also requires them to maintain social distancing. Anyone caught travelin…
(2020-05-15). 'We were totally helpless': Russian woman jailed for SLAPPING 'abusive' Californian husband, mother tells RT. rt.com 
What looked like an intercontinental fairytale romance turned into a story of domestic violence, when a Russian woman was arrested for slapping the American husband her mother says abused her. | When she married a Californian man last year, 30-year-old Krasnodar native Alina Alipatova couldn't have imagined that the line between romance and fear could be crossed so fast. She met her future husband while holidaying in Miami and quickly fell in "big love" with him, the woman's mother, Elena Gertsog, told RT this week. | Once engaged, the happy couple spent two months at the Californian's house in San Luis Obispo…
(2020-05-15). In the Race for Immunity, Sweden Leads the Pack. globalresearch.ca In a pandemic, there is no substitute for immunity, because immunity provides the best protection against reinfection. That's why Sweden set its sights on immunity from the very beginning. They crafted a policy that was designed to protect the old …
(2020-05-15). "My Job Is to Make Syria a Quagmire for the Russians": CIA Doctrine Made Official Policy. globalresearch.ca Like with the disastrous Iraq quagmire years before the US war machine came to Syria under Obama, Washington's rationale and justification for occupying the Syrian Arab Republic has shifted and changed drastically multiple times over. | When ultimately what started …
(2020-05-15). Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa. wsws.org The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
(2020-05-15). In Spain, demands for ensuring safety of Basque political prisoners. peoplesdispatch.org Patxi Ruiz, a political prisoner belonging to the Basque ethnicity in Spain, started a hunger strike in the Murcia II prison where he is being held to protest harassment and threats by the jail authorities…
(2020-05-15). Give Peace a Chance: Saudi Arabia and the UAE Jostle for Position in War-Ravaged Countries for Contracts. strategic-culture.org Is the coronavirus, which has hit GCC countries quite hard, going to fuel proxy wars further with the economic objective of fortunes to be made, once the fighting stops? Or dig them in deeper? Don't overlook Russia in the scramble for reconstruction contracts. | The bigger they are, the harder they fall. This certainly applies to countries in the GCC which are attempting to pick themselves up again. It's a cruel irony, some might argue, that the UAE's diversification in its economy away from oil dependency, made it more vulnerable than Saudi Arabia's and so was hit harder by the virus. An economy dependent on tou…
(2020-05-15). Quarantined & lonely? Find a 'SEX BUDDY,' Dutch government advises. rt.com 
Dutch authorities have decided that sex is a necessity, even in times of lockdown. Ever the pragmatists, they suggest that quarantined singletons "make arrangements" with a willing partner. | With more than 43,000 people infected with the coronavirus and a death toll of 5,600, the Netherlands has been on lockdown since late March. Citizens are allowed to have up to three visitors in their homes, provided they keep a distance of 1.5 meters from each other. Naturally, this precludes most sexual activity. | However, the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) has admitted that two se…
(2020-05-15). Why Capitalism Can't Cure Global Pandemics. counterpunch.org We frequently hear that COVID-19 is the worst pandemic since the influenza of 1918. It is forgotten that another pandemic known as "the third plague" (because it was "the third major bubonic plague outbreak to affect European society") killed millions from the 1890s to the 1950s in Asia's southern, southeastern, and eastern regions, continuing well
(2020-05-15). Finland: Schools Reopen Despite Health Situation. telesurenglish.net Finland's Education Ministry reopened Thursday schools after a two-month closure period due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Pre-school and elementary school children were the first to return their activities. | RELATED: | "Experts affirm schools reopening would have a minimal impact on the pandemic, but grand benefits for children," Education Minister Li Andersson said, adding that her office instructed municipality authorities to enforce p…
(2020-05-15). Rushed relaxation of coronavirus measures in Germany puts thousands of lives at risk. wsws.org With the general relaxation of the coronavirus measures, cases in schools, retirement homes, local transport, industry and the entire working population are inevitably on the rise again.
(2020-05-15). "Corona demonstrations" in Germany: Neo-Nazis join hands with Free Democrats, Christian Democrats and Left Party. wsws.org The FDP's leader in Thuringia, Thomas Kemmerich, participated in a demonstration against the measures put in place to restrict the spread of the coronavirus. Like other such mobilisations in Germany, it was dominated by the extreme right.
(2020-05-15). Spring cleaning takes on a new importance during COVID-19 pandemic. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released reopening guidelines for cleaning and disinfecting public spaces, workplaces, businesses, schools and homes. Dr. Gregory Poland, a Mayo Clinic infectious diseases expert, suggests taking a practical approach to spring cleaning. If no one in your household has been infected, he says standard spring cleaning practices …
(2020-05-15). Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: COVID-19 news briefing. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Gregory Poland, an infectious diseases expert and head of Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group, covers the latest news on the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Poland discusses how the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, is changing, and how scientists and researchers are rapidly gaining new knowledge about the virus and the disease that it …
(2020-05-15). Declassified Mueller investigation transcripts confirm no evidence WikiLeaks colluded with Russia. wsws.org The "Russian connection" was baldly asserted by the Democratic Party, US intelligence officials and the corporate media…
(2020-05-15). "Truth in America R.I.P.": In America there is only Official Truth, and It's a Lie. globalresearch.ca In "freedom and democracy" America there is only official truth, and it is a lie. A person or website that speaks real truth is shunted aside as a "conspiracy theorist," "Russian agent," "racist," "anti-semite," or other such name with the …
(2020-05-15). Russia ends federal COVID-19 shutdown measures as it surges to second place in infections worldwide. wsws.org There are now more coronavirus infections in Russia than anywhere else in the world, with the exception of the United States and Spain.
(2020-05-15). NYT Has Trouble Talking Seriously About the Swedish Approach. cepr.net Opinion columns are always given more leeway than news articles, but it would be reasonable to expect that an opinion column in a major newspaper have some connection to reality. That does not appear to be the case with this one that tells us "I live in Sweden. I'm not panicking." The piece is a …
(2020-05-15). The positive side of Colombia: ambassador can eat two families' monthly income in just one lunch. colombiareports.com Many Colombians may have no food, but that doesn't mean their Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva, Switzerland, can't have lunch that could sustain two families for…
(2020-05-14). Western media concerned coronavirus 'hasn't killed more Russians'. rt.com 
US and allied media outlets seem frustrated that the pandemic isn't killing more Russians, so they're claiming the death toll is higher, despite a lack of evidence — while insisting Moscow is the one spreading disinformation. | When the number of confirmed coronavirus cases started accelerating in Russia last month, Western media pounced, presuming the increase would be followed by the kind of spike in casualties seen in the US and many European countries. That hasn't happened, and the same outlets that were licking their lips waiting for the Russian body count to explode now seem to feel cheated. | A ne…
(2020-05-14). US muscle-flexing threatens to open Arctic front in new Cold War with Russia. thealtworld.com 
The US Navy is on the cusp of conducting confrontational freedom of navigation operations in the Arctic that threaten Russian economic and national security interests. | The recent resumption by the US Navy of a Three American destroyers and a British frigate, accompanied by a supply ship, ventured into the Arctic body of water last week. The…
(2020-05-14). Tense Calm in Montenegro After Day of Mass Protests. telesurenglish.net Montenegro was under a cloak of tense calm on Thursday, after mass protests in several cities, which were strongly repressed by the police and during which people were arrested and injured, including minors. | RELATED: | The origin of the situation was the detention of Orthodox Archbishop Joanikij and eight other clergymen who were saying mass in honor of Saint Vasilije Ostrovski on May 12, when thousands of people…
(2020-05-14). Slovenian Left protests amendments to Nature Conservation Act. peoplesdispatch.org The amendments proposed by the Slovenian government make it more difficult for organizations to attain the status of a nature conservation organization in public interest. This is believed to be a step towards the sale of the country's resources…
(2020-05-14). COVID-19 Vaccine Could Be Ready Within a Year: EU. telesurenglish.net The European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced that a coronavirus vaccine could be ready for approval within a year in an "optimistic scenario". | RELATED: | "I don't think a vaccine could be ready by September of this year," EMA vaccine department chief Marco Cavaleri said at a press conference. | For Cavaleri, the world could look on the optimistic side that the vaccine will be ready within a year, in 2021. | C…
(2020-05-14). At Least 100,000 Health Workers Contracted COVID-19 Worldwide. telesurenglish.net The International Council of Nurses (ICN) Thursday informed that at least 100,000 health workers have contracted COVID-19 so far and asked governments to publish more complete figures on this worrying situation. | RELATED: | In some European countries, over 10 percent of coronavirus-infected people are health workers. In Spain, the proportion of affected reached 19 percent, although the ICN stressed that international c…
(2020-05-13). Flynn 'unmasking' documents show involvement of senior Obama administration officials, including Joe Biden. rt.com 
A newly published list of US officials who were interested in National Security Agency (NSA) records on Trump adviser Michael Flynn includes President Barack Obama's chief of staff, as well as Vice President Joe Biden. | Biden is listed as requesting the unmasking on January 12, 2017, the same day the Washington Post published a story claiming that Flynn had misreported his conversations with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, based on leaked NSA information. | Flynn unmasking documents f… by
(2020-05-13). In banning Hezbollah, Germany responds to far-right, U.S. and Israeli pressure — not any security threat. thegrayzone.com Hezbollah has never been charged with any crimes in Germany nor does it have an official presence in the country….
(2020-05-13). Georgia politicians, activists demand action for poultry workers. fightbacknews.org Gainesville, GA – COVID-19 virus is spreading quickly among poultry workers and their families in Georgia. In Hall County, northeast of Atlanta, there is a hotspot with over 2000 cases and 29 deaths as of May 12. With roughly 16,500 workers employed by 14 chicken plants across Georgia, and most immigrant families living with two or three generations in one house, the situation is code red. There needs to be an emergency response from the government and the corporations. | Chicken processing is dirty, demanding and dangerous work done mainly by immigrants from Mexico, many of whom are women. The big corporations,…