ASYMPTOMATIC COVID-19 SPREAD DEEMED 'RARE,' W.H.O SAYS

The spread of Covid-19 by someone who is not showing symptoms appears to be

rare, Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization's technical lead for

coronavirus response and head of the emerging diseases and zoonoses unit,

said during a media briefing in Geneva on Monday.

"From the data we have, it still seems to be rare that an asymptomatic

person actually transmits onward to a secondary individual," Van Kerkhove

said on Monday.

"We have a number of reports from countries who are doing very detailed

contact tracing. They're following asymptomatic cases, they're following

contacts and they're not finding secondary transmission onward. It is very

rare -- and much of that is not published in the literature," she said. "We

are constantly looking at this data and we're trying to get more information

from countries to truly answer this question. It still appears to be rare

that an asymptomatic individual actually transmits onward."

Van Kerkhove went on to describe how the novel coronavirus, a respiratory

pathogen, spreads through droplets, which can be released when someone

coughs or sneezes.

"It passes from an individual through infectious droplets. If we actually

followed all of the symptomatic cases, isolated those cases, followed the

contacts and quarantined those cases, we would drastically reduce -- I would

love to be able to give a proportion of how much transmission we would

actually stop -- but it would be a drastic reduction in transmission," she

said.

Van Kerkhove also said that what appear to be asymptomatic cases of Covid-19

often turn out to be cases of mild disease.

NORTH KOREA TO SEVER COMMUNICATION LINES WITH 'ENEMY' SOUTH KOREA: STATE

MEDIA

North Korea said on Tuesday it will sever hotlines with South Korea as the

first step toward shutting down all means of contact with Seoul, state news

agency KCNA reported.

For several days, North Korea has lashed out at South Korea, threatening to

close an inter-Korean liaison office and other projects if the South does

not stop defectors from sending leaflets and other material into the North.

Top government officials in North Korea, including leader Kim Jong Un's

sister, Kim Yo Jong, and Kim Yong Chol, vice-chairman of the Central

Committee of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, determined "that the work

towards the South should thoroughly turn into the one against an enemy,"

KCNA said.

As a first step, at noon on Tuesday, North Korea will close lines of

communication at an inter-Korean liaison office, and hotlines between the

two militaries and presidential offices, the report said.

"Regular communication channels are needed most during a crisis, and for

that reason North Korea cuts them off to create an atmosphere of heightened

risk," Daniel Wertz, of the U.S.-based National Committee on North Korea,

said on Twitter. "It's a well-worn play for Pyongyang, but nonetheless a

dangerous one."

The people of North Korea have "been angered by the treacherous and cunning

behaviour of the South Korean authorities with whom we still have lots of

accounts to settle," KCNA said.

The report accused South Korean authorities of irresponsibly allowing

defectors to hurt the dignity of North Korea's supreme leadership.

"We have reached a conclusion that there is no need to sit face to face with

the South Korean authorities and there is no issue to discuss with them, as

they have only aroused our dismay," KCNA said.

CYNTHIA D RITCHIE, WHO CREATED A STIR IN PAK POLITICS

A mysterious American young woman and darling of the current establishment

has made explosive allegations against senior leaders of the Opposition

Pakistan People's Party (PPP). Cynthia D. Ritchie has claimed that Rehman

Malik, then Pakistani interior minister, raped her after lacing her drink

with sedatives in 2011. She also accused former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza

Gilani and former health minister Makhdoom Shahabuddin of physically

manhandling her inside President's House in Islamabad. Asif Ali Zardari was

then President of Pakistan.

The Bilawal Bhutto Zardari-led party now faces allegations of serious

misconduct as alleged by Cynthia D. Ritchie after a member of the party

filed a case against her for maligning the name of its assassinated leader

Benazir Bhutto.

She said she still has evidence that could prove her allegations and

promised to come out with it as early as next week. "I will be happy to go

into more detail with an appropriate, neutral, and investigative

journalist," she said.

Last week, PPP Peshawar district President Zulfiqar Afghani had filed a

complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency's (FIA) cybercrime wing

against Cynthia D. Ritchie. He claimed that Cynthia D Ritchie had made very

derogatory and slanderous comments against former Prime Minister Benazir

Bhutto and her marital life with former President Asif Ali Zardari.

According to Cynthia's allegations, Benazir Bhutto would have guards rape

women.

Since then she has posted a number of images of PPP leaders, big and small,

in situations not considered ideal in an Islamic country like Pakistan.

These images show PPP leaders drinking, gambling, and dancing with women. On

Friday, she reiterated that she "had a lot of dirt on a lot of people in

this country".

Ritchie also said she had informed about the incident to "someone" at the US

Embassy in Pakistan in 2011, "but due to 'fluid' situation and 'complex'

relations between US and Pakistan, [the] response was less than adequate".

Referring to her ongoing battle with the PPP, she said it was not really

about that tweet but about the individuals who know she had a lot of dirt on

a lot of people in Pakistan. "It is primarily those who use and abuse

others, particularly women and the vulnerable population. And I am one of

them," Ritchie was quoted as saying by Dawn newspaper.

COVID-19: FIRST TIME IN 75 YEARS, WORLD LEADERS WON'T GATHER AT UN

The president of the UN General Assembly said Monday that world leaders will

not be coming to New York for their annual gathering in late September for

the first time in the 75-year history of the United Nations because of the

Covid-19 pandemic.

But Tijjani Muhammad-Bande told a news conference that he hopes to announce

in the next two weeks how the 193 heads of state and government will give

their speeches on pressing local and world issues during the assembly's

so-called General Debate.

"World leaders cannot come to New York because they cannot come simply as

individuals," he said. "A president doesn't travel alone, leaders don't

travel alone" and "it is impossible" to bring large delegations to New York

during the pandemic.

"We cannot have them in person as we used to - what happened in the last 74

years - but it will happen" Muhammad-Bande said of the annual event.

Muhammad-Bande said the 75th anniversary celebration "is not conceived as

one moment" but will continue throughout the year starting on June 26, the

75th anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the United Nations in San

Francisco.

He said a political declaration on the United Nations at 75 is also being

negotiated, and world leaders will have the opportunity to mark the occasion

- only not in person.

WORST RECESSION SINCE WW-II, SAYS WORLD BANK

The global economy, which has plunged into a severe contraction, will shrink

by 5.2 per cent this year due to the massive shock of the Covid pandemic and

the shutdowns, the World Bank said on Monday.

The Covid recession is the first since 1870 to be triggered solely by a

pandemic, World Bank President David Malpass said in his foreword to the

latest edition of the Global Economic Prospect report released on Monday.

The current projections suggest the Covid recession will involve a decline

in global per capita GDP by 6.2%, making it the deepest global recession

since 1945-46 (World War-II), and more than twice as deep as the recession

associated with the global financial crisis, it said.

'NO NEED TO BE SHY': CHINA ASKS US SENATOR FOR PROOF OF VACCINE SABOTAGE

China on Monday challenged a US senator to furnish evidence supporting his

allegation that Beijing is actively trying to sabotage the efforts of

western countries to develop a vaccine for Covid-19.

Republican Senator Rick Scott has told BBC television that he thinks China

is actively working to disrupt the efforts of the US and other western

countries to develop the vaccine.

"We have evidence that communist China is trying to sabotage us or slow it

down. China does not want us and England and Europe to do it first. They

have decided to be an adversary to Americans and I think to democracy around

the world," Scott said.

Scott said the information was provided by the US's intelligence community

but didn't elaborate.

On Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying's response to

Scott's accusation was acerbic.

"Since this lawmaker said he has evidence that China is trying to sabotage

western countries in their vaccine development, then please let him present

the evidence. There's no need to be shy," Hua told journalists at the

regular ministry briefing on Monday.

Hua added that the development of a Covid-19 vaccine is not a bilateral

competition and Beijing hopes Washington will mirror China's pledge and

offer any vaccine it develops to the world for free.

On Sunday, a senior Chinese official said once developed, China will make

its Covid-19 vaccine a global public good.

LOCKDOWN MAY HAVE AVERTED OVER 3 MN COVID-19 RELATED DEATHS IN EUROPE: STUDY

Wide-scale lockdowns including shop and school closures have reduced

Covid-19 transmission rates in Europe enough to control its spread and may

have averted more than three million deaths, researchers said on Monday.

In a modelling study of lockdown impact in 11 nations, Imperial College

London scientists said the draconian steps, imposed mostly in March, had "a

substantial effect" and helped bring the infection's reproductive rate below

one by early May.

The reproduction rate, or R value, measures the average number of people

that one infected person will pass the disease on to. An R value above 1 can

lead to exponential growth.

The Imperial team estimated that by early May, between 12 and 15 million

people in the 11 countries - Austria, Belgium, Britain, Denmark, France,

Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland - had been infected

with Covid-19.

By comparing the number of deaths counted with deaths predicted by their

model if no lockdown measures had been introduced, they found some 3.1

million deaths were averted.

"Measuring the effectiveness of these interventions is important, given

their economic and social impacts, and may indicate which course of action

is needed to maintain control," the researchers said in a summary of their

findings.

BAIL SET AT $1 MILLION FOR POLICE OFFICER CHARGED WITH GEORGE FLOYD'S MURDER

A Minneapolis judge set a $1 million bail for police officer Derek Chauvin

Monday as he made his first court appearance charged with the murder of

George Floyd, the 46-year-old African-American man whose death sparked

nationwide protests.

Chauvin, who was filmed on May 25 pressing his knee on handcuffed Floyd's

neck until he expired, appeared by video from Minnesota state prison to face

charges of one count of second degree murder, one count of third degree

murder, and one count of manslaughter.

In a procedural hearing that did not require Chauvin, 44, to submit a plea,

the judge in the Hennepin County District Court set his bail at $1 million

with conditions, and $1.25 million without conditions.

Meeting the conditions would require him to surrender his firearms, not work

in law enforcement or security in any capacity, and have no contact with the

family of Floyd.

GEORGE FLOYD PROTESTS | DEMOCRATS PROPOSE SWEEPING POLICE OVERHAUL; TRUMP

CRITICIZES

Democrats proposed a far-reaching overhaul of police procedures and

accountability Monday, a sweeping legislative response to the mass protests

denouncing the deaths of black Americans in the hands of law enforcement.

The political outlook is deeply uncertain for the legislation in a polarized

election year. President Donald Trump is staking out a tough "law and order"

approach in the face of the outpouring of demonstrations and demands to

re-imagine policing in America.

"We cannot settle for anything less than transformative structural change,"

said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, drawing on the nation's history of slavery.

Before unveiling the package, House and Senate Democrats held a moment of

silence at the Capitol's Emancipation Hall, reading the names of George

Floyd and many others killed with police interactions. They knelt for 8

minutes and 46 seconds - now a symbol of police brutality and violence - the

length of time prosecutors say Floyd was pinned under a white police

officer's knee before he died.

Mr. Trump, who met with law enforcement officials at the White House,

characterized Democrats as having "gone CRAZY!"

As activists call for restructuring police departments and even to " defund

the police," the president tweeted, "LAW & ORDER, NOT DEFUND AND ABOLISH THE

POLICE." He declared later, "We won't be dismantling our police."

Democratic leaders pushed back, saying their proposal would not eliminate

police departments - a decision for cities and states - but establish new

standards and oversight.

CORONAVIRUS | NEW YORK CITY BEGINS REOPENING AS INFECTION RATE PLUMMETS

Exactly 100 days after the first coronavirus case was confirmed in New York

City, some workers began returning to jobs on Monday at the start of

reopening from a citywide shutdown to battle the epidemic that killed nearly

22,000 of its residents.

People who had been staying home for months boarded subways and buses as the

most populous U.S. city began Phase One of its hopeful journey toward

economic recovery.

"This is clearly the hardest place in America to get to this moment because

we're the epicenter," Mayor Bill de Blasio told a news conference at the

Brooklyn Navy Yard.

New York, by far the hardest-hit U.S. city, on Monday reported the rate of

people testing positive for the coronavirus fell to a new low of 3%, well

below its threshold for reopening of 15%, de Blasio said.

As some 400,000 workers head back to 32,000 construction sites, wholesale

and manufacturing centers and some retail sites across the city, de Blasio

urged them to wear face masks and use social distancing to keep COVID-19

cases on a downward trend - particularly those who use mass transit to get

to work.

"If we follow those guidelines in New York City, there should not be a

spike, just like there hasn't been a spike across the rest of the state,"

Cuomo said.

CHINA TO TRAIN 14 MILLION MIGRANT WORKERS IN 2 YEARS

China on Monday outlined plans to train 14 million migrant workers in

vocational programmes over the next two years, as it combats an

unprecedented jobs crisis in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At least seven million rural migrant workers will be trained in the coming

year, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said, in an

initiative that "will target rural migrant workers including those with a

job or without, and those who newly resettled in cities or returned to their

hometowns, as well as poor labourers", State media reported.

The pandemic has severely impacted China's 290 million migrant worker

population, many of who were left stuck in their hometowns in January and

subsequently found no jobs to return to after the gradual lifting of

lockdowns by April. The outbreak hit during the annual new year holiday, by

when most factories were closed and much of the migrant population had

already returned home.

China's unemployment peaked at around 80 million in March, according to

estimates, although official figures were much lower. According to UBS, the

number of people not working reached 70 to 80 million in March, subsequently

falling to between 33 million and 40 million in May, the Wall Street Journal

reported.

The new plan calls on rural areas that have seen a large number of

unemployed migrant workers return to lead in training, aimed at helping them

find jobs locally or start businesses.

ENGLAND LAUNCHES STUDY OF CORONAVIRUS SPREAD IN SCHOOLS

Health minister Matt Hancock launched a study to find out the prevalence and

spread of the coronavirus among school children and teachers in England on

Tuesday to help inform the phased reintroduction of education after a

lengthy national lockdown.

The decision to gradually re-open schools has divided opinion, with Britain

suffering the second-worst international death toll from Covid-19 and

ministers warning of the need for caution to prevent a second wave of the

virus.

The study will look to establish how widespread the virus is among children,

who typically show mild symptoms or no symptoms at all, and how effectively

they transmit the disease.

"This study will help us better understand how common asymptomatic and mild

cases of Covid-19 are so that we can support parents, pupils and teachers

and support-staff, and inform our ongoing response to this new virus,"

Hancock said in a statement.

SOUTH KOREAN COURT REJECTS ARREST OF SAMSUNG'S LEE IN SUCCESSION PROBE

A South Korean court rejected prosecutors' request to arrest Samsung Group's

billionaire heir Jay Y Lee on allegations of price manipulation and

violations of auditing rules, resolving a major uncertainty hanging over the

world's largest technology manufacturer.

The Seoul Central District Court ruled against an arrest warrant for Lee and

two other former Samsung executives Monday, saying that despite considerable

evidence obtained through their investigation, they didn't have a valid

reason to detain Lee.

"The relevance of the basic facts has been explained and it seems

prosecutors have secured a considerable amount of evidence through their

probes," said Won Jung-sook, the judge in the case. "However, they had an

insufficient explanation of the need to detain suspects."

Samsung Electronics Co. shares rose by as much as 2.9% in early Seoul

trading on Tuesday.

The ruling marks a victory for the co-vice chairman of the company, who's

embroiled in an increasingly contentious dispute with South Korean

prosecutors over allegations of bribery and corruption. The request for an

arrest warrant stemmed from a legal clash that dates back to 2015, centering

on whether Lee and Samsung used illegal means to help him take control of a

conglomerate founded by his grandfather.