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US response to Ebola crisis marked by ‘fatal missteps’
Fresh air strikes slow down IS
Stay away from Hong Kong affairs, China tells US, UK
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Indian-American gets key US Justice Deparment post
Vanita Gupta is the first South Asian to head the US civil rights division.
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US response to Ebola crisis marked by ‘fatal missteps’
The US response to the Ebola virus that has ravaged parts of West Africa and sickened two US nurses has been marked by a series of potentially fatal missteps. The operator of a Dallas, Texas, hospital where the two nurses contracted Ebola while treating Thomas Duncan, a Liberian man who eventually died on October 8, has apologised for initially failing to correctly diagnose Duncan’s illness. Doctors at Dallas’ Presbyterian hospital had at first sent Duncan home after he complained of a fever and abdominal pain. Dr Daniel Varga, the chief clinical officer at Texas Health Resources, said Presbyterian hospital had made errors. “Unfortunately, in our initial treatment of Mr. Duncan, despite our best intentions and highly skilled medical team, we made mistakes,” Varga wrote in testimony to a US Congress committee. “We did not correctly diagnose his symptoms as those of Ebola. We are deeply sorry.” The missteps did not end with the hospital. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also failed to spot a red flag when Amber Vinson, one of the nurses who later tested positive for Ebola, informed the agency that she had a fever and planned to travel. Vinson was not barred from taking two Frontier Airlines flights, potentially exposing more than 130 people to the virus. Dr Tom Frieden, CDC’s director, told CNN Vinson should never have been cleared to fly. As these missteps came to light, US President Barack Obama assured Americans that the risk of them contracting the virus is “extraordinarily low” even as he ordered a much more aggressive response to the disease. Obama said he was “absolutely confident” that a serious outbreak of the disease in the U.S. can be prevented, but that this will become exponentially more difficult if the epidemic rages out of control in West Africa. U.S. federal health officials were expected to face tough questions on Thursday when they appear before a congressional committee seeking answers to the measures in place to prevent the spread of the virus. Obama, meanwhile, cleared his schedule — he cancelled an appearance at a Democratic Party fundraiser on Wednesday — to take stock of his administration’s response to the Ebola virus. Obama has directed the CDC to send in a “rapid response team, a SWAT team, essentially” to be on the ground as quickly as possible when someone is diagnosed with Ebola. This team will guide local hospitals on observing proper protocols. “If we do these protocols properly, if we follow the steps, if we get the information out, then the likelihood of widespread Ebola outbreaks in this country are very, very low,” he said following a meeting with U.S. officials including CDC’s Frieden on Wednesday. But, in a sign that this may be an uphill task, Obama added, “I think what we’ve all learned over the last several weeks is that folks here in this country, and a lot of non-specialised hospitals and clinics, don’t have that much experience dealing with these issues. And so we’re going to have to push out this information as aggressively as possible.” The Ebola virus can only be contracted when a person comes in contact with the bodily fluids of somebody who is showing symptoms of the disease. Seeking to reassure Americans, Obama said he “shook hands with, hugged, and kissed not the doctors, but a couple of the nurses” at a hospital in Atlanta where Vinson was flown for treatment. Such reassurance may mean little to Americans as was evident from the fact that sales of hand sanitizers have gone through the roof. With the onset of the regular flu season, doctors warned that patients may mistake flu symptoms for Ebola. Schools close in Ohio, Texas over Ebola fears Some schools in Ohio and Texas closed on Thursday amid fears that students or staff had been exposed to a nurse who had Ebola infection during an airline flight.The US Centers for Disease Control has reached out to 132 people who were on the same October 13 flight as Amber Vinson, but said there was an extremely low risk that anyone was infected UN fears of major food crisis
United Nations: The global famine warning system is predicting a major food crisis if the Ebola outbreak continues to grow exponentially over the coming months, and the United Nations still hasn't reached over 750,000 people in need of food in West Africa as prices spiral and farms are abandoned. On the eve of World Food Day today, UN agencies and NGOS are scrambling to scale up efforts to avert the crisis.—
AP Setback to Sierra Leone Ebola has infected two people in the last untouched Koinadugu district of Sierra Leone, officials said on Thursday, a setback in efforts to contain the disease in one of the hardest-hit nations Suspected case in Spain An Air France plane was isolated at Madrid's airport on Thursday after a passenger was reported to have a fever and shivers, officials said.
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Fresh air strikes slow down IS
Washington, October 16 The air strikes appear to have slowed the militant group's advances, but "the security situation on the ground in Kobani remains tenuous," it said in a statement on Thursday. Targets hit included 19 buildings, two command posts, three fighting positions and three sniper positions, it added. Stepped-up air attacks by U.S.-led coalition in the past few days have stalled the advance of the Sunni militants on Kobani, a mainly Kurdish town on the Turkish border, according to a group monitoring the conflict in Syria. The Pentagon said on Wednesday the air strikes have killed several hundred Islamic State fighters around Kobani, but it cautioned that the town could still fall to the group, which has seized large parts of Iraq and Syria. On Thursday, Central Command said the latest attacks were designed to disrupt Islamic State's reinforcement and resupply efforts and to prevent it from "massing combat power on the Kurdish-held portions of Kobani." Meanwhile, two fighter jets from the Danish Air Force were deployed Thursday morning to support the fight against the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group in Iraq, said the Danish defence ministry. — Agencies Britain sends armed drones to Iraq
LONDON: Britain said on Thursday it was sending armed drones to Iraq to help it fight Islamic State militants and support British Tornado aircraft already conducting air strikes. The "Reaper" drones, built by privately owned U.S. firm General Atomics, were being re-deployed from Afghanistan, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said in a written statement to parliament. Iraq minorities face extinction from onslaught
LONDON: More than 12,000 civilians have been killed in Iraq so far this year, mainly by Islamic State (IS), and minorities facing ethnic cleansing are the principal victims, according to a report published on Thursday. Minority Rights Group International (MRG) said several minority communities, including Christians, Yezidis and Turkmen, had been subjected to assassinations, kidnappings and sexual violence and were in danger of extinction in Iraq. |
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Stay away from Hong Kong affairs, China tells US, UK
Beijing, October 16 “I want to point out that no foreign government has the right to interfere in Hong Kong affairs in anyway. Hong Kong administration is carrying out investigations," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei replied to a question on the US criticism of violent crackdown by police against protesters. The United States has said it was deeply concerned by reports of Hong Kong police beating a handcuffed protester and called for a swift, transparent and complete investigation. British Prime Minister David Cameron has said it was important for China to ensure that people of Hong Kong enjoyed all freedoms and rights guaranteed in the Anglo-Chinese agreement of 1997 which signed during the hand over of Hong Kong to China. Talks offer with students
Hong Kong's embattled leader Leung Chun-ying reopened his offer of talks with student leaders today a week after the government abruptly pulled out of discussions aimed at ending weeks of mass democracy rallies. — Agencies |
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Indian-American gets key US Justice Deparment post
Washington, October 16 President Barack Obama is expected to nominate Gupta to serve as the permanent Assistant Attorney General of Civil Rights in the coming months. "Vanita has spent her entire career working to ensure that our nation lives up to its promise of equal justice for all," said Attorney General Eric Holder after he announced that Gupta will serve as Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. Gupta succeeds Molly Moran, who will become Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General. She begins at the department on Monday, October 20. "Even as she has done trailblazing work as a civil rights lawyer, Vanita is also known as a unifier and consensus builder. She has a knack for bridging differences and building coalitions to drive progress," Holder said. Gupta, who was most recently the Deputy Legal Director of ACLU, has expertise on federal and state policing issues, immigration, and criminal justice reform. She started her career with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and has been active in supporting South Asian communities, including serving on SAALT's Council of Advisors. — PTI Singapore’s cultural award for Tamil poet
Singapore: Indian-origin Singaporean poet and writer K T M Iqbal will be awarded Cultural Medallion, the country's highest cultural award by the President. It is the highest recognition for the 74-year-old Tamil poet whose achievements include more than 200 children's songs written for Radio Singapore in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as seven collections of poetry. |
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Pak must incite those fighting in J&K: Musharraf
Islamabad, October 16 “We have source (in Kashmir) besides the (Pakistan) army... People in Kashmir are fighting against (India). We just need to incite them (sic),” the retired General, who is currently on bail in a treason case, told a television channel. Musharraf, who had grabbed power in 1999 soon after the Kargil conflict, said the army was ready for war (with India) and lakhs of people in Pakistan were willing to go and fight for Kashmir. India should not be under the illusion that Pakistan will not hit back, he added. “In Kashmir, we can fight with the (Indian) Army from both front and back... We are Muslims. We will not show the other cheek when we are slapped. We can respond tit for tat,” he said, while commenting on the recent firing along the Line of Control and International Border. He said external aggression happened only when the country remained internally weak. “If we remain strong internally, no one can dare to target us.” Musharraf said: “(Narendra) Modi is anti-Muslim and anti-Pakistan. He has not changed. The problem is with us... We are running to attend his (Modi) inauguration, we should keep our dignity.” The former President also termed the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) granted to Pakistan by India as “a joke”. Musharraf, who was forced to resign in 2008 after his supporters lost, returned to Pakistan in 2013 after over four years of self-exile but faces a slew of cases. Currently, he is on bail in four criminal cases.— PTI
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Iraqis killed, 123 hurt in four car bomb attacks BAGHDAD:
Four car bomb attacks and a mortar strike around Shi'ite parts of northern Baghdad killed 47 people and wounded 123 within a span of two hours on Thursday. A suicide car bomb hit an army checkpoint near a restaurant in Talibiya district at 2.30 pm, killing nine people; 45 minutes later, a pair of car bombs exploded in al-Dawlai district in Baghdad, killing 16 people and wounding 35
others.
— Reuters 21 militants killed in Pak air strikes Islamabad:
At least 21 militants were killed and their five hideouts destroyed on Thursday when Pakistani military choppers pounded their hideouts in troubled Khyber tribal district near Afghan border. The air strikes by security forces came a day after a suicide bomber targeted the peace committee of Zalakhel tribesmen in Tirah Valley and killed five persons.
— PTI EU court overturns Tamil Tiger sanctions LUXEMBOURG:
European Union judges on Thursday struck down anti-terrorism sanctions against the Tamil Tigers that were imposed by the EU as these were based on "imputations derived from the press and the Internet" rather than on direct investigation, as required by law. The court also said the EU, following Indian sanctions against the Tigers, failed to ensure that India gave sufficient judicial protection to those it accused.
— Reuters 'Indian radio' remark sparks race row in NZ Melbourne: An official of the immigration department in New Zealand has sparked off a race row by saying that people who listen to Indian radio are unlikely to be New Zealanders. A beauty therapist's position had been advertised in the New Zealand Herald, Winz and with Indian station Radio Tarana. Immigration lawyer Ramya Sathiyanathan has lodged a complaint with the country's race relations conciliator.
— PTI Haqqani network founder’s son arrested KABUL: Afghan forces have arrested Anas Haqqani, the son of the feared Haqqani network's founder, along with a militant commander in charge of suicide attacks. The Haqqani network has been blamed for some of the deadliest attacks on NATO troops in Afghanistan. Anas was in charge of raising funds "from individuals from Arab countries" and recruitment through social media.
— Reuters 5 new non-permanent members of UNSC elected United Nations: The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday elected Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain and Venezuela as the new non-permanent members of the Security Council for a two-year term beginning in January next year. The 193-member UN body held elections to vote for five new members, who would take the place of Argentina, Australia, Korea, Luxembourg and Rwanda after their tenures at the 15-nation Council by the year-end.
— AFP Kerry’s plane grounded... again Vienna: Globe-trotting top US diplomat John Kerry was left hoofing it back on a commercial flight from Vienna on Thursday, after his ageing Air Force plane broke down for the fourth time this year. After marathon talks on Iran's nuclear programme in the Austrian capital yesterday, Kerry's party of more than 40 State Department staff and journalists were checking out of their hotel rooms before dawn Thursday when the news came that his Boeing 757 needed unspecified repairs - again.
— AFP
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The US response to the Ebola virus that has ravaged parts of West Africa and sickened two US nurses has been marked by a series of potentially fatal missteps.
dismissed criticism by the US and the UK over its handling of pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, saying no foreign government has the right to interfere in the former British colony's affairs.
Indian-American Vanita Gupta, a top lawyer from American Civil Liberties Union, has been appointed to head the civil rights division of the US Justice Department, becoming the first South Asian to hold this post.
