Middle East Experience

Population-wide facemask use could push COVID-19 transmission down to controllable levels for national epidemics and could prevent further waves of the pandemic disease when combined with lockdowns, according to a UK study published Wednesday.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.The research, led by scientists at the Britain’s Cambridge and Greenwich Universities, suggests lockdowns alone will not stop the resurgence of the new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, but that even homemade masks can dramatically reduce transmission rates if enough people wear them in public.“Our analyses support the immediate and universal adoption of facemasks by the public,” said Richard Stutt, who co-led the study at Cambridge.He said the findings showed that if widespread mask use were combined with social distancing and some lockdown measures, this could be “an acceptable way of managing the pandemic and re-opening economic activity” long before the development and public availability of an effective vaccine against COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus.Read more:Coronavirus: Blood type increases how likely you are to catch COVID-19, says reportBald men may be more vulnerable to severe coronavirus symptoms: StudyThe study’s findings were published in the “Proceedings of the Royal Society A” scientific journal.The World Health Organization updated its guidance on Friday to recommend that governments ask everyone to wear fabric face masks in public areas where there is a risk to reduce the spread of the disease.In this study, researchers linked the dynamics of spread between people with population-level models to assess the effect on the disease’s reproduction rate, or R value, of different scenarios of mask adoption combined with periods of lockdown.The 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 study found that if people wear masks whenever they are in public it is twice as effective at reducing the R value than if masks are only worn after symptoms appear.In all scenarios the study looked at, routine facemask use by 50 percent or more of the population reduced COVID-19 spread to an R of less than 1.0, flattening future disease waves and allowing for less stringent lockdowns.“We have little to lose from the widespread adoption of facemasks, but the gains could be significant,” said Renata Retkute, who co-led the study.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Second coronavirus wave may be prevented with face masks: Study

The United Arab Emirates has the potential to be the world’s most prepared nation for the post-coronavirus era, according to the Minister of State for Advanced Sciences, state news agency WAM reported.The UAE’s proactive vision that implements elements of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) to achieve the UAE Centennial 2071 goals makes it uniquely situated to thrive in a post-pandemic world, said Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri, Minister of State for Advanced Sciences.“The UAE Council for the Fourth Industrial Revolution fully supports the government’s effort to overcome the challenges caused by COVID-19 in a way that will reinforce UAE’s readiness for the future through adopting the 4IR technologies and harnessing technological innovation to drive sustainable development,” Al Amiri said.For more on coronavirus, visit our dedicated section.The UAE has rolled out new tech-centric measures to fight coronavirus, including the chatBot service, Virtual Doctor for COVID-19, that residents can use to assess whether their symptoms could indicate they have the novel coronavirus.Additionally, the Ministry of Health and Prevention has introduced the TraceCovid app that detects other devices with the app installed and shares proximity data to track potential strains of infection and alert individuals if they’ve come into contact with someone with the virus.Yesterday, the UAE reported 528 new coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 39,904. More than 22,700 have recovered from the virus.The UAE’s Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation also recently released a set of guidelines for returning to work post-coronavirus that include continuous sanitization of equipment and facilities and ensuring social distancing measures are maintained, among other precautionary measures.Read more:Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia has repatriated over 47,500 citizens, says spokespersonCoronavirus: Saudi Arabians, expats can apply for emergency permits on Tawakkalna appCoronavirus: WHO urges Pakistan to implement ‘intermittent’ lockdowns as cases surge
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UAE has potential to be best-prepared nation for post-coronavirus world: Minister

The coronavirus is being worshipped as a goddess in parts of India, as Indian media reports that believers are leaving offerings to the new deity, “Corona Mai.”Women in some villages in India’s Uttar Pradesh have started worshipping “Corona Mai,” Indian news agency IANS reported Monday. The women dug a pit in a field and filled it with water then offered nine cloves and nine laddoos, an Indian sweet, to their deity, IANS said.The villages include Tumkuhiraj, Kasia, Hata, Captanganj and Khadda tehsil in Kushinagar district, according to the agency.Other women have since joined the activity and begun to pray to Corona Mai to spare lives, the news agency added.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the appIndian news channel CNN-News18 noted that large numbers of women at other locations had also gathered last Friday to worship the coronavirus deity.The women similarly left offerings and sang a song to appease the goddess.“We have taken shelter under goddess coronavirus. She will be pacified with worship. The doctors have failed to treat patients and scientists have also failed to develop a vaccine to cure coronavirus. We have worshipped coronavirus goddess so that our family members will remain safe from it,” Naina Devi, a worshipper who joined one of the groups, told News18.Not all are happy with the worship of the new goddess, however.“The authorities must stop such activities which promote superstition. Everyone knows that there is no cure for corona and this kind of activities must be stopped,” Radhey Lal, a school teacher in Kasia, told IANS.The worshipping follows the months-long spread of coronavirus around the world, with infections of the coronavirus exceeding 7.23 million.In India, authorities have moved to ease lockdown measures aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus, with shopping malls, places of worship, restaurants and state borders reopening on Monday.The country, however, reported its highest single-day death toll on the same day, with cases in India’s capital, New Delhi, expected to surge to half a million soon.Countrywide there have been 275,413 cases of coronavirus infection, with 7,719 deaths. Nearly 135,000 have recovered so far, according to a Johns Hopkins tally.Read more:India’s coronavirus infection rate spikes as New Delhi becomes virus hotspotCoronavirus: India’s New Delhi may see cases surge to half a million soonCoronavirus: India eases lockdown despite jump in New Delhi COVID-19 cases
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Indian women worship coronavirus, leave offerings to virus goddess, say reports

Sunni politicians are putting pressure on the Kadhimi government to determine the fate of Sunnis displaced during the fight against the Islamic State.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Iraqi Sunnis seek answers for those displaced in time of fighting Islamic State

China is looking to increase its influence in war-torn Syria, and using the coronavirus pandemic to accelerate these plans.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: China shows greater interest in Syria, amid pandemic and US tensions

Saudi Arabia reported its highest ever increase of 3,717 new cases on Wednesday, bringing the total in the Kingdom to 112,288.The city of Riyadh had a particularly high increase, with over 1,300 cases.Yesterday, a health official warned that the number of active coronavirus cases and the virus-related death toll in Saudi Arabia is rising because several members of the public continue to ignore preventative measures.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.Forty percent of COVID-19 cases reported in the Kingdom so far are the result of people failing to follow rules instructed by the ministry.Dozens of young men and women who did not adhere to precautionary measures when they left their homes and then came into direct contact with members of their family, including the elderly, infected several other people, al-Abd al-Ali said.Today, authorities sais that citizens and residents can now apply for emergency medical permits during curfew hours on the new “Tawakkalna” app.The app, which was launched in cooperation with the Saudi Red Crescent Authority and the Saudi Health Council, is aimed at managing the movement of the public during the nighttime curfew imposed due to coronavirus.The Kingdom is currently in stage two of its three-stage plan developed to facilitate the return to normalcy.Read more: Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia’s economy shows strengths despite COVID-19, say expertsCoronavirus: Saudi Arabia reimposes restrictions, curfew in JeddahAl Arabiya English's Tamara Abueish contributed to this report.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia reports highest ever increase of 3,717 new COVID-19 cases

Israel’s High Court ordered the state to cancel the Regulation Law that enables to retroactively legalize settlement homes built on private Palestinian lands.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Israel’s top court strikes settlement Regulation Law

In Baghdad, there has been a non-stop barrage of criticism of the US-Iraqi talks beginning today..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: US-Iraqi dialogue launched amid pro-Iranian smear campaign

On a short visit to Israel, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas expressed concern over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s annexation plan and called upon the government to return to the two-state solution.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: In Israel, German foreign minister expresses concern over annexation plan

Suweidah province has seen large-scale protests against the Syrian regime..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Syria regime mobilises supporters after Suweidah anti-Assad protests