‘Reckless and Criminal’: Maduro Seeks Support From World Leaders Over US Narco-Terror Indictment

Nicolás Maduro, indicted in the U.S. for narco-terrorism, issued a written appeal to world leaders for support Monday in the face of what he characterized as a U.S. conspiracy linked to an aborted coup attempt. Read

Pompeo: US Experts Need ‘Accurate, Transparent’ Virus Data From China, Italy, Iran

U.S. medical experts modeling how the COVID-19 pandemic may play out need data, especially from such hard-hit countries as China, Italy and Iran, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Monday night. Read

COVID-19 Deaths: Italy, 1 in 5,789 People; United States, 1 in 157,499

From Hillary Clinton (“He did promise ‘America First’”) to MSNBC’s Chris Hayes (“We are quite literally doing a worse job of containing the virus than any other country on earth”), critics are trashing President Trump over the fact the U.S. is now reporting more confirmed COVID-19 cases than any other country. Read

Coronavirus Pandemic: Senior WHO Official Dodges Questions About Taiwan

The World Health Organization’s timid deference to the Chinese Communist Party was starkly illustrated by an abruptly-terminated online interview with a Hong Kong broadcast journalist who pressed a top WHO official on Taiwan’s situation in the COVID-19 pandemic. Read

Xi: ‘From Day One of Our Fight Against the Outbreak, We Have Put People’s Life and Health First’

"From day one of our fight against the outbreak, we have put people’s life and health first,” Chinese President Xi Jinping told a Group of 20 virtual summit on Thursday, as he characterized China as being in the forefront of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Read

US Officials, but Not Trump, Swipe China: ‘We Are Saving Lives, Not Saving Face’

As they outlined additional emergency funding to help vulnerable countries deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. officials on Thursday took a sideways swipe at China, and stressed the importance of humanitarian aid coming without strings attached. Read

More Than 50,000 Americans Are Looking For State Dep’t Help to Get Home

In an operation unprecedented in scale, State Department officials are working to bring home Americans stranded around the world as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more than 50,000 of them have requested help. Read

Bob Levinson’s Family Says He Is Dead; Blames ‘Cruel, Heartless’ Iranian Regime’

After 13 harrowing years of awaiting word on his fate, the family of missing former FBI agent Robert Levinson said Wednesday information from U.S. officials have led them to conclude that he “died while in Iranian custody.” Read

Pompeo: Chinese, Iranians Will ‘Ultimately Hold Their Leaders Responsible’ For Mishandling the Outbreak

Chinese and Iranians have been the people most harmed by their own governments’ poor handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and they will “ultimately hold their leaders responsible,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday. Read

Gaza Preacher Praises Allah for Infecting Israelis, Americans -- Day Before First Cases Reported in Gaza

A preacher told worshipers in Gaza’s largest mosque on Friday that Allah sent the coronavirus to inflict suffering on Israelis, Americans and those who plot against the Al-Aqsa mosque, while protecting Palestinians. Read

US to Reduce Aid to Afghanistan by $1 Billion After Leaders Fail to End Political Standoff

Evidently frustrated with Afghan leaders’ unwillingness to end a political standoff that is holding up an initiative to end America’s longest war, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Monday that the U.S. is reducing its aid to Afghanistan immediately by $1 billion. Read

US: Iranian Regime Lying, Covering Up Scale of Outbreak, Stealing Medical Funds

Hitting back at the Iranian regime’s attempts to blame the United States for the novel coronavirus, the State Department on Monday accused Tehran of lying to its people about the outbreak, covering up its scale, and facilitating the spread of the disease to other countries. Read

Ayatollah: US Offer of Help in Outbreak May be a Plot to Spread Virus Further

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei explained Sunday why his regime is rejecting repeated U.S. offers to help the Iranian people deal with the coronavirus outbreak: The U.S., he said, may send drugs secretly designed to spread the disease further. Read

Still Promoting COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories, Chinese State Media Points to WH Petition

As China’s state media continue to promote unfounded theories about the origins of the coronavirus outbreak that first emerged in Wuhan late last year, a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) newspaper drew attention over the weekend to an obscure petition asking the U.S. government if a U.S. Army laboratory was the source of the virus. Read

New Study Indicates COVID-19 Death Risk May Be Lower Than Previously Estimated

A study by infectious disease experts at the University of Hong Kong and Harvard University found that the probability of dying after developing COVID-19 symptoms is about 1.4 percent – significantly lower than the 3.4 percent estimate cited by the World Health Organization in early March. Read

Police Apologize for Trying to Silence Wuhan Doctor Who Warned of Virus, Then Died From It

The public security bureau in the epicenter city of Wuhan has apologized to the family of a doctor who was reprimanded in January for spreading “rumors” online about a new mystery virus, before he succumbed to the disease a month later. Read

‘Do the Math’: State Dep’t Official Challenges Chinese Narrative on Outbreak

As Beijing continues to reject U.S. accusations that its early handling of the novel coronavirus outbreak made the situation worse, a senior State Department official on Wednesday evening contrasted China’s response to how U.S. authorities dealt with the H1N1 “swine flu” outbreak 11 years ago. Read

Amid Outbreak Precautions, Pro-Lifers Say Planned Parenthood Staffer Deliberately Coughed at Them

An “angry” Planned Parenthood staffer purposefully coughed at nearby pro-life vigil participants outside the company’s premises in Pittsburgh, Pa. vigil organizers say. Read

Chinese Media Outlet Invites WHO Experts to Criticize USA, But They Praise It Instead

A reporter with China’s state news agency Xinhua implicitly invited World Health Organization (WHO) experts at a media briefing to criticize the Trump administration over its health funding decisions and response to the coronavirus outbreak. Instead, they thanked the Trump administration, and praised the U.S. public health sector. Read

US House Will Lose One of its Last Three Pro-Life Democrats

In yet another indicator of the ideological shift in the Democratic Party, a “progressive” candidate succeeded in her second attempt Tuesday to oust an eight-term, pro-life Democratic House incumbent in the Chicago area. Read

Catholic League to House Ethics Committee: Reprimand Rep. Tlaib For ‘Obscene Assault on People of Faith’

Catholic League president Bill Donohue wrote Monday to House Ethics Committee chairman Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Fla.), urging the committee to reprimand Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) for retweeting a Twitter post which said, in part, “F**k a National day of prayer.” Read

Pompeo Scolds Beijing Over ‘Outlandish Rumors’ Blaming US For Coronavirus

Chinese officials and state media have stepped up insinuations that the United States may be responsible for the coronavirus outbreak which emerged in China late last year, and on Monday Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called them out on it. Read

Number of Confirmed Cases Outside China Overtakes Those in the Country Where Outbreak Began

The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus outside China has now overtaken the number inside the country where the outbreak emerged late last year. Read

Rep. Tlaib Retweets: ‘F**k a National Day of Prayer’

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) at the weekend retweeted a post on Twitter which said in part “F**k a National day of prayer,” in relation to President Trump’s call for Americans of all faiths to pray for all those affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Read

Biden Would Name a Woman As His VP; Supports Taxpayer Funding of Abortion

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden committed on Sunday night to naming a woman as his vice presidential running mate if he becomes his party’s nominee, and his rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, said he “in all likelihood” would do so, too – in his case, “a progressive woman.” Read

Democrats Suspend Their Attempt to Limit President’s Travel-Ban Authority

House Democrat leaders on Thursday withdrew from the calendar a floor vote on a bill targeting President Trump’s travel restrictions, to the dismay of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which advocates against what critics describe as the “Muslim ban.” Read

US Attacks Iran-Backed Militia Hours After General Refers to US Fatalities as 'Red Line'

U.S. forces carried out retaliatory strikes against Iranian-backed Iraqi militias overnight Thursday following a rocket attack on an Iraqi base that killed two U.S. troops and one British soldier. Read

Three Coalition Troops at Iraqi Base Killed in Rocket Attack Bearing Hallmarks of Iran-Backed Militias

A rocket attack Wednesday night on an Iraqi military base housing coalition personnel cost the lives of three coalition personnel, the U.S. military confirmed. Details were not provided pending notification of next of kin, but military sources said two Americans and a British soldier were killed. Read

US Bars Entry to Most Foreigners From 26 European Countries; Trump Says EU ‘Failed’ to Take Precautions

In a bid to prevent the introduction of new coronavirus cases from abroad, President Trump announced Wednesday that, starting 11:59 PM eastern time on Friday and for 30 days, restrictions will apply to travel from Europe to the United States, with exemptions for “Americans who have undergone appropriate screenings.” Read

Linking the Coronavirus to China Is ‘Racist’? Numerous Diseases Have Been Named For Places

Many of the most serious epidemics in history have been named for the countries, cities, or other geographical locations where they originated or were first identified. Read

Iran Frees 70,000 Prisoners, But No Americans, in Attempt to Stem Coronavirus Outbreak

Iran has released tens of thousands of prisoners in a bid to prevent the spread through the prison population of the novel coronavirus, but American citizens remain incarcerated, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday. Read

US Troop Drawdown From Afghanistan Reportedly Begins, As Deal With Taliban Edges Ahead

After a shaky start, an agreement signed between the U.S. and the Taliban late last month is inching forward, with Monday’s announcement that a U.S. troop drawdown has begun, and indications that Afghanistan’s president will issue a decree Tuesday on Taliban prisoner releases. Read

WHO: Most Infected People Will Recover, As Have More Than 70% of Chinese Patients

More than 70 percent of the cumulative number of people infected with the novel coronavirus in China have recovered, the World Health Organization stressed on Monday, saying that although the threat of a global pandemic looms large, most infections will end in recovery. Read

Communist Party Outlet Sees a Hidden Agenda Behind Calls for China to Apologize For Outbreak

Chinese officials and state media continue to react strongly to a suggestion by an American television host last week that the Chinese government apologize for the novel coronavirus that emerged in that country late last year and is sweeping the globe. Read

China Bristles at Pompeo’s References to ‘Wuhan Coronavirus’; Don't Call It 'Wuhan'

As the number of novel coronavirus cases reportedly continues to fall in China – in sharp contrast to the situation in other parts of the world – the country’s state-run media is reacting furiously to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s criticism of China’s handling of the outbreak. Read

WHO Chief Praises Trump for Leading Coronavirus Response From the Top

On Thursday, WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at a coronavirus briefing in Geneva, spoke at length about the importance of countries’ responses to the outbreak being led from the highest level of government. Read

Pompeo Vows No 'War Crimes' Investigtion of U.S. in Afghanistan; Slams ‘Renegade, Unlawful, So-Called Court’

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday slammed a decision by the International Criminal Court (ICC) judges to allow an investigation of alleged war crimes by the U.S. and others in the Afghan conflict to proceed, and suggested retaliatory steps will be taken. Read

US Still Has the Lowest Per-Capital Coronavirus Rate of the 10 Countries With Most Cases Reported

Of the ten countries that have reported more than 100 confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus each, the United States as of Thursday continues to have the smallest number – by a significant margin – in proportion to its national population. Read

Mortality Rate Lower Than Past Coronavirus Outbreaks, Higher Than Seasonal Flu

The Wuhan coronavirus sweeping the globe currently has a mortality rate higher than that of seasonal influenza – although many, many more people die of flu – but lower than that of two previous coronavirus outbreaks since the turn of the century. Read

China Defeated in Bid to Take Control of Yet Another UN Agency

Most Americans will likely not have heard of the World Intellectual Property Organization, but a vote at the obscure U.N. body in Geneva Wednesday saw a Chinese leadership bid defeated, in a victory for the U.S. seven months after it failed to prevent Beijing from taking control of another U.N. agency. Read

Ayatollah: Iran is Being Open About Coronavirus, Unlike ‘Some Other Countries’

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei asserted Tuesday that the regime has been completely transparent about the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in the country – unlike other countries. Read

US Strikes Taliban For Attacking Afghan Forces, After Trump Says Taliban Wants to ‘Cease the Violence’

President Trump said Tuesday he had “a good, long [phone] conversation” with the leader of the Taliban and that the group wants to “cease the violence.” But on Wednesday, the United States conducted an airstrike against Taliban fighters ... Read

Pandemic? WHO Notes That Outside China, 81% of Coronavirus Cases Are in Just Four Countries

Ninety percent of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus worldwide have been in China, mostly in a single province, and in the other 65 countries affected as of Monday, 81 percent of cases are limited to just four countries – South Korea, Italy, Iran and Japan. Read

Coronavirus Screening Begins for US-Bound Travelers From South Korea, Italy

Officials in South Korea have begun health-screening all U.S.-bound airline passengers for the novel coronavirus, and Italy will begin doing so within hours, Vice President Mike Pence said on Monday evening. Read

Trump Mocks Buttigieg, Klobuchar Endorsements of Biden: ‘That’s Called Quid Pro Quo’

Having some fun at Joe Biden’s expense on the eve of Super Tuesday, President Trump wondered aloud whether the Democratic presidential candidate had offered administration posts in return for former rivals’ endorsements – and added, “that’s called quid pro quo.” Read

New Travel Curbs Begin; NIH’s Fauci Credits Earlier Restrictions For Small Number of Cases in US

The Trump administration has expanded travel restrictions and cautions designed to help contain the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, barring from entry any foreign national who has been in Iran in the past fortnight, and advising Americans not to travel to the two worst-affected areas of the world outside of mainland China. Read

US-Taliban Deal Paves Way For US Troop Drawdown, Prisoner Releases

A deal signed between the U.S. and the Taliban at the weekend paves the way for the withdrawal of one-third of the roughly 13,000 U.S. troops now in Afghanistan within four months. Read