Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary has the coronavirus, the White House said Friday, making her the second person who works at the White House complex known to test positive for the virus this week.President Donald Trump, who publicly identified the affected Pence aide, said he was “not worried” about the virus spreading in the White House. Nonetheless, officials said they were stepping up safety protocols for the complex.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.Pence spokeswoman Katie Miller, who tested positive on Friday, had been in recent contact with Pence but not with the president. She is married to Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser. The White House had no immediate comment on whether Stephen Miller had been tested or if he was still working out of the White House.Katie Miller had tested negative on Thursday, a day before her positive result.“This is why the whole concept of tests aren’t necessarily great,” Trump said. “The tests are perfect but something can happen between a test where it’s good and then something happens.”The positive test for the senior Pence aide came one day after White House officials confirmed that a member of the military serving as one of Trump’s valets had tested positive for COVID-19.Six people who had been in contact with Miller were scheduled to fly with Pence on Friday to Des Moines, Iowa, on Air Force Two. They were removed from the flight just before it took off, according to a senior administration official.None of those people were exhibiting symptoms, but were asked to deplane so they could be tested “out of an abundance of caution,” a senior administration official told reporters traveling with Pence. All six later tested negative, the White House said.The official said staff in the West Wing are tested regularly but much of Pence’s staff — which works next door in the Executive Office Building — are tested less frequently. Katie Miller was not on the plane and had not been scheduled to be on the trip.Pence, who is tested on a regular basis, was tested Friday. Miller tweeted she was “doing well” and looked forward to getting back to work.White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said the administration was stepping up mitigation efforts already recommended by public health experts and taking other unspecified precautions to ensure the safety of the president.Meadows said the White House was “probably the safest place that you can come,” but he was reviewing further steps to keep Trump and Pence safe.The White House requires daily temperature checks of anyone who enters the White House complex and has encouraged social distancing among those working in the building. The administration has also directed regular deep cleaning of all work spaces. Anyone who comes in close proximity to the president and vice president is tested daily for COVID-19.“We’ve already put in a few protocols that we’re looking at, obviously, to make sure that the president and his immediate staff stay safe. But it’s not just the president, it’s all the workers that are here ... on a daily basis," Meadows said.Trump’s valet’s case marked the first known instance where a person who has come in close proximity to the president has tested positive since several people present at his private Florida club were diagnosed with COVID-19 in early March. The valet tested positive on Wednesday.The White House was moving to shore up its protection protocols to protect the nation’s political leaders. Trump said some staffers who interact with him closely would now be tested daily. Pence told reporters on Thursday that both he and Trump would now be tested daily as well.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US VP Pence’s press secretary tests positive for coronavirus; Trump ‘not worried’
Out of sight, out of mind: Lebanon expands landfill to clear garbage from streets
Earlier this month, the specter of another Lebanese garbage crisis loomed as mountains of trash once again piled up in the streets of Beirut and Mount Lebanon.The overspill of garbage cans onto curbsides followed the closure of the giant open-air landfill on Beirut’s northern coast on April 30 after reaching capacity.The last garbage crisis hit in 2015 – that prompted the popular You Stink movement – when a primary landfill site closed, and government authorities did nothing to implement a contingency plan. Lebanon still suffers from lackluster waste management facilities, with 90 percent of waste ending up in landfills that emit toxic gases breathed in by the neighboring population.The Burj Hammoud-Jdeideh landfill was originally predicted to fill up in 2019, but a nearly 30 percent reduction in daily waste production following mass protests and the coronavirus lockdown delayed its shutdown, according to Samar Khalil, a member of the Waste Management Coalition that was formed in the wake of the 2015 crisis.Read more: Lebanon’s government to manage mobile networks ahead of new tenderIn response to the recent overflow, the government Tuesday approved the expansion of the site by a height of 1.5 meters – a decision that has been condemned by environmentalists and local Members of Parliament as yet another stop-gap measure in Lebanon’s long history of poor waste management policy.Tipping PointThe mountains of waste emit a foul stink for kilometers around – an invisible indicator of an altogether more deadly emission. The Burj Hammoud-Jdeideh landfill is currently 16 meters in height and accepts around 1,400 tons of waste every day.According to a 2017 study published in the Environmental Health Journal, people working in the vicinity of the landfill were more likely to suffer from respiratory, dermatological, and gastrointestinal disease.“It has become an infected region, you can no longer live here,” said Elias Hankach, an MP for the Metn district where Jdeideh is located.Read more: Lebanon's banking association drafts national rescue planEach year, the dump is estimated to leak 120,000 tons of hazardous leachates into the Mediterranean Sea, and nearby fishermen have been forced further out to sea to make their catch.With another 1.5 meters of waste set to be piled on as the government promises to find alternative solutions, experts are worried about the ability of the concrete walls to contain it, and the potential health and environmental impact.“There is a major concern around the integrity of the entire landfill,” said Khalil, adding that the landfill was hastily constructed without an economic impact assessment, as the government rushed to end the 2015 crisis.“Waste management has always been a case of patching up a crisis, and that pattern has not changed,” Najat Saliba, an atmospheric chemist and director of the Nature Conservation Center at the American University of Beirut, told Al Arabiya English.“[This] is a completely reactive measure,” said Khalil. “They knew they had a problem, and waited until the last minute.”The environment minister did not respond to a request for comment on the decision.Beirut’s two controversial coastal landfills, Burj Hammoud-Jdeideh to the north and Costa Brava to the south, were constructed as quick-fix solutions to the 2015 garbage crisis, when trash filled the streets of Beirut due to the closure of the Naameh waste dump and ensuing suspension of waste collection.Thousands took to the streets in protests that saw the foundation of many now-well-established civil society groups and environmental coalitions.The landfills, which together absorb waste from Beirut and the adjacent Mount Lebanon governorate, had a predicted lifespan of four years, to give the government enough time to find a more sustainable solution.Five years on, despite the passage of a decentralized waste management law in 2018, the government has failed to implement the law, instead prolonging the use of hazardous open-air landfills.The expansion of the Jdeideh site is yet another iteration of Lebanon’s kick-the-can-down-the-road approach to waste, removing what gathers in public view and dumping it elsewhere.“All they want is for there not to be a scandal and for it to blow up in their faces [like in 2015],” Hankach said.“They will do everything just to make the streets appear clean.”The more waste, the betterThose who spoke with Al Arabiya English argue that the expansion of the landfill is not only a result of poor planning and incompetence, but also a reflection of the corruption and cronyism that has become emblematic of Lebanon’s waste management sector.The multi-million dollar contracts for Beirut’s two coastal landfills were awarded to the businessmen allies of some of the country’s most powerful politicians. Jihad al-Arab, whose company runs the Costa Brava site, is close to former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, and Dany Khoury, in charge of Burj Hammoud-Jdeideh, is said to be close to President Michel Aoun.“One of the major problems is the privatization of solid waste management in Lebanon,” said Paul Abi Rached, the founder of the TERRE Liban environmental group.“The solutions are there,” Abi Rached said, explaining that the amount of waste entering landfills could be reduced by two-thirds simply through effective waste sorting, composting, and recycling.“It is just not in the interest of the waste contractors.”As contractors are paid for waste removed by the ton, the more garbage a landfill receives, the more money they receive. A December article in The New York Times reported that the contractors in charge of the Costa Brava landfill in south Beirut add water to garbage containers to boost their weight.Read more: Lebanese women with foreign spouses denied coronavirus aid“There is no intention to solve this issue once and for all,” Hankach said. “The people in power, and those behind them, do not want that.”The cabinet of Prime Minister Hassan Diab, formed after mass protests forced the resignation of Saad Hariri’s government, vowed to listen to the calls of demonstrators, including addressing the issue of waste management.However, by continuing in the policy of temporary measures and directing Lebanon’s waste to landfills, the government has so far failed to keep their promise.“Instead, they proved they will simply execute the agenda of the mafia in Lebanon,” Abi Rached said.Read more: As crises hit, the American University of Beirut faces fight of its lifeEx-Lebanese president Émile Lahoud decries capital controls, can only withdraw $1,000Palestinian refugee from Lebanon removed from MEA repatriation flight from Dubai
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Out of sight, out of mind: Lebanon expands landfill to clear garbage from streets
Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia reports 1,704 new cases, 10 deaths
Saudi Arabia reported 1,704 new coronavirus cases and 10 new deaths, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 37,136 and the virus-related death toll to 239, the Ministry of Health announced on Saturday.The Kingdom has witnessed 1,024 recoveries, bringing the number of total recovered cases to 10,144.For more on coronavirus, visit our dedicated section. Meanwhile, the Kingdom has eased the coronavirus restrictions in some Madinah neighborhoods allowing residents to leave their homes between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., according to the Ministry of Interior.The decision follows a recommendation by health authorities that restrictions be relaxed in areas like Al-Shouraybat, Bani Dhafar, Qurban, Al-Jumuah, and parts of Al-Iskan and Bani Khidrah.A ministry spokesman said that the public response to remaining restrictions will be monitored and evaluated by health authorities, and called on people to abide by these measures to ensure public safety.Read more:Coronavirus: Robot doctor helps keep Saudi Arabia medical staff safeIn pictures: Saudi Arabia’s Abha blooms purpleTake a look at the artwork of graffiti artist Klakh, ‘Saudi Arabia’s own Banksy’
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia reports 1,704 new cases, 10 deaths
Can Iraq’s new PM, and the region, escape Suleimani’s long shadow?
Rise of spy chief to premier comes as Iran struggles to maintain momentum months after killing of powerful general..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Can Iraq’s new PM, and the region, escape Suleimani’s long shadow?
San Diego man walks around stores wearing swastika medical mask
The incident is currently being investigated by the local sheriff's department.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: San Diego man walks around stores wearing swastika medical mask
UAE-India repatriation: Pregnant expat ‘without marriage certificate’ hopes to fly back home
For the woman to deliver the baby in the UAE, she and her husband need to present an official marriage certificate..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: UAE-India repatriation: Pregnant expat ‘without marriage certificate’ hopes to fly back home
Three New York children have died from rare illness tied to COVID-19
Calling it a "truly disturbing" development, the governor said people had been laboring under the impression that young people were not at risk from the coronavirus.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Three New York children have died from rare illness tied to COVID-19
Iranian influence in Iraq under threat due to economic crisis, political shifts
The United States believes Iraq is well positioned to strengthen its political power in light of Iran’s internal recession due to the coronavirus pandemic and crippling US economic sanctions..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Iranian influence in Iraq under threat due to economic crisis, political shifts
Lebanese Shi'ite leader may urge decriminalization of homosexuality
Acting US director of national intelligence Richard Grenell says he spoke "with an influential Lebanese Shiite leader" who is "close" to coming out publicly in favor of decriminalizing homosexuality.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Lebanese Shi'ite leader may urge decriminalization of homosexuality