Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Sofiane Rahmani can hardly believe his luck. After several years of living on the street and bouncing between shelters, he now has his own hotel room, personal bathroom and all meals provided. “It’s true luxury,” the 16-year-old Algerian illegal migrant told AFP at the three-star Bel …
Read More »Virus turns health workers in Egypt into ‘outcasts’
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | After showing symptoms similar to those of the coronavirus, Egyptian doctor Ahmed Negm went into self-isolation in an old apartment, but before long he was hounded out by fearful neighbours. While health workers in many countries are getting cheers and applause for risking their lives in …
Read More »Kadaga wants relief food distributed across the country
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga has tasked able members of the public to contribute towards aiding the vulnerable people within their communities overcome the challenges that came with COVID-19 restrictions. Kadaga observed that the national taskforce is currently concentrating its’ food aid campaigns …
Read More »Boda boda riders excited on receiving impounded motorcycles back
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Boda boda riders in Kampala have expressed their excitement on receiving back their motorcycles that were impounded by police across the country. A few weeks ago, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni had directed that motorcycles and bicycles should not move after 2 pm as a …
Read More »Kabale University offers UGX 72m to renovate regional hospital ICU
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Kabale University has donated 72 million Shillings towards the rehabilitation of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Kabale Regional Referral Hospital. The intervention follows concern about the sorry state of the ICU at a time when the country is battling an outbreak of coronavirus …
Read More »What we know about the ‘devious’ coronavirus
Paris, France | AFP | Will the novel coronavirus leave you short of breath or make you lose your sense of smell? And if you have had it once, can you be confident you are immune? So far, the research on COVID-19 has raised as many questions as it has answered. …
Read More »Mistrust and black market flourish in Nigeria as virus spreads
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | A black market in coronavirus test kits is flourishing in Nigeria, spurred in part by negligible faith in the country’s health system to defeat an emerging threat. Testing is a crucial weapon in combatting COVID-19. It not only identifies where the stealthy virus has invaded — …
Read More »Report highlights growing concern of depression among footballers
Paris, France | AFP | Increasing numbers of professional footballers are struggling with anxiety and depression having been forced out of action with the sport suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report by global players’ union FIFPro released on Monday. FIFPro surveyed 1,602 players across 16 countries, including …
Read More »Refugee women facing greater violence risk during crisis: UNHCR
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Displaced women and girls are facing a heightened risk of gender-based violence during the coronavirus crisis, the UN Refugee Agency said Monday. The UNHCR said they may be forced into “survival sex” or child marriages. Lockdowns imposed to control the spread of COVID-19 have restricted movement and led to the …
Read More »Pandemic has ‘destroyed’ rights of dying: Israeli academic
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | The coronavirus pandemic has “destroyed” the rights of dying people, renowned Franco-Israeli sociologist Eva Illouz told AFP, lamenting the absence of meaningful human contact in many patients’ final days. “Think of a patient on a hospital bed: what do they see? They have no contact with …
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