Less than half of women globally have jobs and the pandemic has made things worse, UN warns

DW — The World’s Women 2020 report has found a severe lack of progress in women’s rights and job market participation. The dire situation has only been made worse by the pandemic... Read more »

Coronavirus survives for 9 hours on human skin, four times longer than flu – study

RFI — The coronavirus remains active on human skin for nine hours, Japanese researchers have found, in a discovery they said showed the need for frequent hand washing to combat the Covid-19... Read more »

No Coronavirus Vaccine Before US Election

VOA — WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s predictions that a coronavirus vaccine would be ready before Election Day, Nov. 3, will not be met.  On Friday, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced it would... Read more »

US 2020 election: Who does China really want to win?

BBC — US presidential elections have long been a source of both intrigue and irritation for China’s Communist Party rulers. As arguably the most consequential exercises in democracy on the planet, they... Read more »

UN Arms Embargoes on Iran Expire Despite US Objections

VOA — TEHRAN – A decade-long U.N. arms embargo on Iran that barred it from purchasing foreign weapons like tanks and fighter jets expired Sunday as planned under its nuclear deal with... Read more »

Adding Up Trump’s Climate Rollbacks

VOA — When Donald Trump was elected president nearly four years ago, experts expected his policies would end up raising U.S. greenhouse gas emissions significantly.  “President Trump has fulfilled that expectation,” said... Read more »

Iran Sees No Arms-buying Spree as It Expects UN Embargo to End

VOA — DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Iran said it was self-reliant in its defense and had no need to go on a weapons-buying spree as a United Nations conventional arms embargo... Read more »

Iran Moves Closer to Rejailing Female Rights Activist Over Criticism of Government

VOA — WASHINGTON – Iran has moved a step closer to re-imprisoning a female human rights advocate for her peaceful expressions of opposition to the nation’s Islamist rulers.    Speaking to VOA... Read more »

African Diaspora Looks to Flex Political Muscle in US Elections

VOA— WASHINGTON – The African diaspora in the United States is mobilizing voter drives, as organizers believe 2020 is a time for these voters to flex their political muscle as never before. ... Read more »

Top US Infectious Disease Expert Suggests Skipping Thanksgiving

VOA — U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci says Americans may want to reconsider their traditional Thanksgiving celebrations due to the conronavirus pandemic.   In televised interviews Wednesday and Thursday, the... Read more »