Author: Alan Lorenz

France is Forging A Broad Alliance Against Jihadists in the Sahel
12Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
France, Europe, News

France is Forging A Broad Alliance Against Jihadists in the Sahel

France has launched a new partnership between European, West African and Arab countries to fight jihadist groups in the Sahel.   More extensive political cooperation and increased deployment of elite forces should boost the difficult military mission against armed Muslim extremists in sub-Saharan Arabia. The renewed coalition means that there will be more support from other European countries and that countries in the Sahel region will start to cooperate more. European countries will provide more elite troops to support the armies of African countries. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, among others, will provide financial aid. France has had soldiers in the region since 2013. The French army is currently present with a troop strength of 5100 men. However, the situation ...
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Norwegian Mosque Attacker Gets 21 Years in Prison
11Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Norway, Europe, News

Norwegian Mosque Attacker Gets 21 Years in Prison

A man who wanted to carry out an attack on a mosque in Norway has been sentenced to 21 years in prison there.   The court ruled that 22-year-old Philip Manshaus was guilty of murder and terrorism. The Norwegian armed with firearms attacked the mosque in Bærum in August last year, about 20 kilometres west of the capital Oslo. The twenties were unable to kill or seriously injure anyone there. He did start shooting, but a 65-year-old believer was then able to take his weapons. Police later found the body of his seventeen-year-old stepsister Johanne Zhangjia Ihle-Hansen in Manshaus's house. He had shot her with a shotgun. Manshaus repeatedly demonstrated extreme right-wing and Islamophobic views during his trial.
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Demonstrators Destroyed Statues of Christopher Columbus in the United States
10Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
US, News

Demonstrators Destroyed Statues of Christopher Columbus in the United States

Demonstrators destroyed statues of Christopher Columbus in several places in the United States.   The effigy of the famous and controversial explorer was beheaded in Boston, Massachusetts, and landed in a lake in Richmond, Virginia, according to local media. Peaceful protests preceded the attack on the statue in Richmond. Some 1,000 people gathered in a park to show solidarity with the indigenous people of the United States. Rioters later toppled the statue. They set it on fire and threw it into a lake. It is still unclear who attacked the statue in Boston. In 2015 someone wrote the words "lies" and "genocide" on the effigy of Columbus in Richmond. That same year, someone smeared the statue in Boston with red paint. At that time the slogan "Black Lives Matter" was written on i...
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WHO: Those Who Have No Symptoms Hardly Spread Coronavirus
9Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
News

WHO: Those Who Have No Symptoms Hardly Spread Coronavirus

WHO: Those Who Have No Symptoms Hardly Spread Coronavirus. Are patients without symptoms contagious or not? It is one of the big questions of this corona crisis.   First, there was the uncomfortable thought that infected people without symptoms can indeed infect others quickly. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), asymptomatic distribution is now an "infrequent" phenomenon. According to a study from Hong Kong, published in April, individuals infected with Covid-19 can infect others as early as two to three days before they develop the first symptoms. That news raised concerns among scientists two months ago because the virus would be challenging to control in this way. Especially younger and healthy persons who contract the virus never develop symptoms or only mild ...
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China Asks US Senator to Prove Coronal Vaccine Sabotage
8Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
News, China, US

China Asks US Senator to Prove Coronal Vaccine Sabotage

The Chinese foreign ministry asks US Senator Rick Scott on Monday for evidence that China would sabotage the investigation into a coronavirus vaccine.   Republican Scott said he has evidence on Sunday. The ministry says it wants to know what evidence Scott has. "We ask the Senator to show his evidence, as he says China is trying to sabotage Western countries. There is no reason to be shy," said the ministry spokesman. The US senator made his statements on Sunday with the British broadcaster BBC. Scott refused to release the evidence but said he got it from the intelligence services. According to Scott, China does not want another country to develop the vaccine first. Therefore, the state would undermine the efforts of other countries. The spokesman for the Chinese health ministr...
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People Have Also Taken to the Streets in Mexico in Protest of Police Brutality
5Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Mexico, News

People Have Also Taken to the Streets in Mexico in Protest of Police Brutality

People have also taken to the streets in Mexico in protest of police brutality. They want the authorities to account for the death of a man in a police cell.   The man was reportedly arrested for not wearing a mask. Protesters wreaked havoc in the historic centre of the city of Guadalajara and set police cars on fire. Six officers were injured, one of them caught fire. The police arrested 26 people. While the exact cause of death for the detainee in Guadalajara is unknown, images of the 30-year-old man, Giovanni López, were circulated on social media when he was arrested in early May. The recordings show that bystanders say that the police arrested López for not wearing a mask. In the state of Jalisco, of which Guadalajara is the capital, wearing a face mask is mandatory to pre...
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Face Masks Compulsory in Public Transport in England
4Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
UK, News

Face Masks Compulsory in Public Transport in England

In England, from 15 June, people are required to wear a mask in public transport. Grant Shapps, the British Minister for Transport, announced this on Thursday.   The masks are mandatory on buses, planes, trains and ferries. As in the Netherlands, travellers must use non-surgical masks. "That doesn't mean surgical masks, because we use them for clinical settings," said Shapps. "It's about-face covering that you can easily make at home". The minister emphasized that the mouth masks do work against the coronavirus, "although limited". Young children, disabled people and people with respiratory problems do not need to wear them, according to the BBC. Face masks are not mandatory in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is one of the most affected countries worldwide d...
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Number of Coronavirus Deaths in Russia Now Above 5000
2Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Russia, News

Number of Coronavirus Deaths in Russia Now Above 5000

The number of coronavirus deaths in Russia passed 5000 on Tuesday. Health authorities registered 182 new deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 5,037.   The new figures come as Russia eases lockdown measures and prepares to get the economy going again. The government also reported 8,863 new infections out of a total of 423,741, the third-highest after the United States and Brazil. The number of new corona infections has been steadily decreasing since mid-May when the government reported daily increases of approximately 11,000 cases. The authorities say that the high number of infections in Russia is the result of extensive tests. The steady decline in new infections and the low death toll mean the country can return to normal, they say.
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The Referendum on Changing the Russian Constitution Will Take Place on July 1
1Jun By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Politics, News, Russia

The Referendum on Changing the Russian Constitution Will Take Place on July 1

The referendum on changing the Russian constitution will take place on July 1. The change aims to ensure that President Vladimir Putin can stay on longer.   Putin himself announced the new date on Monday. The vote was scheduled for April 22 but was postponed due to the coronavirus. The changes have already been approved in parliament and by the Constitutional Court of Russia. If the people also agree, Putin can remain president for two more six-year terms if he is re-elected. Then he can stay in power until 2036.
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Stock Exchanges in New York Showed A Mixed Picture on Friday At the Opening of Trading
29May By Alan LorenzNo Comments
Business, News, US

Stock Exchanges in New York Showed A Mixed Picture on Friday At the Opening of Trading

Stock exchanges in New York showed a mixed picture on Friday at the opening of trading.   Investors on Wall Street remain cautious due to mounting tensions between the United States and China over Hong Kong. President Donald Trump would later respond to China's emergency laws for Hong Kong. Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow-Jones index was 0.4 percent lower at 25,296 points. The broad-based S&P 500 went down 0.3 percent to 3,022 points, and tech exchange Nasdaq gained 0.2 percent to 9,394 points. The Chinese parliament has approved a proposal to make a special law that will allow Chinese security services to work in Hong Kong when national security is at stake. In Hong Kong, it is feared that this is the beginning of the end of autonomous status. Tensions around Hong Ko...
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