The World Health Organization reports the Saudi-led blockade of Yemen’s sea ports is hampering efforts to contain a diphtheria outbreak that, so far, has caused 197 cases of the disease, including 22 deaths. Diphtheria has spread to 13 of Yemen’s 22 governorates, including the capital Sana’a, since the first case was detected less than two weeks ago. World Health Organization spokesman Christian Lindmeier, says the Saudi blockade is hindering WHO’s ability to import the vaccines needed to keep the disease in check. “There is still not even one dose of Tetanus-Diphtheria vaccine in the country for children above five years and young adults,” said Lindmeier. “Around 8.5 million doses are needed for three rounds of the vaccination campaign.” Diphtheria is an infectious bacterial disease. It can cause severe breathing difficulties, suffocating its victims to death. Lindmeier tells VOA diphtheria is a vaccine-preventable disease. “So, what we did is, we had a vaccination campaign for children under five years,” said Lindmeier. “That was possible with the material which was available in country. And, 1,000 doses of anti-toxins have reached Sana’a on Monday, just Monday 27th…These things are crucial, these things are important.” Following an international outcry, Saudi Arabia has partially lifted the blockade. As a consequence, Lindmeier says a ship carrying 33 tons of medical supplies, including surgical supply kits, infant incubators, and vaccine cold boxes is arriving in Hodeida port. But, because of the long delay and closure of access, he says there is a big backlog of anti-diphtheria vaccines …
Nevada Gambling Leaders Grapple with Pot’s Future in Casinos
A committee exploring the effects of recreational marijuana on Nevada’s gambling industry is wrestling with how the state’s casinos might deal with the pot business while not running afoul of federal law. Lured by a potential economic impact in the tens of millions of dollars, Gov. Brian Sandoval’s Gaming Policy Committee is trying to figure out how casinos can host conventions and trade shows on marijuana. The 12-member committee ended its meeting Wednesday without a formal decision on the matter, but Sandoval said he hopes to have committee recommendations for possible regulations by February. The Nevada Gaming Commission has discouraged licensees in the past from becoming involved with the marijuana business, fearing legal backlash. Committee members have also voiced opposition to the idea of allowing marijuana use at resorts. However, events like MJBizCon, a conference on various aspects of the marijuana growing industry, have drawn the attention of the gambling industry because of their strong turnout. Cassandra Farrington, who started the conference, told the committee that the event brought about 18,000 people to the Las Vegas Convention Center last month and it’s only expected to grow. She noted that marijuana products are not allowed on the show floor, and people who violate that ruled are expelled. Trade shows like Farrington’s conference can generate millions of dollars in tax revenue, said Deonne Contine, the director of the Nevada Department of Taxation. Contine told the committee that a show with about 15,000 people can produce a $28.2 million economic impact on the …
Rising Number of Young Americans Are Leaving Jobs to Farm
Liz Whitehurst dabbled in several careers before she ended up on a Maryland farm, crating fistfuls of fresh-cut arugula in the November chill. The hours were better at her nonprofit jobs. So were the benefits. But two years ago, Whitehurst, 32 — who graduated from a liberal arts college and grew up in the Chicago suburbs — abandoned Washington for a three-acre plot in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. She joined a growing movement of highly educated, ex-urban, first-time farmers who are capitalizing on booming consumer demand for local and sustainable foods and who, experts say, could have a broad impact on the food system. For only the second time in the last century, the number of farmers under 35 years old is increasing, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest Census of Agriculture. Sixty-nine percent of the surveyed young farmers had college degrees — significantly higher than the general population. This new generation can’t hope to replace the numbers that farming is losing to age. But it is already contributing to the growth of the local-food movement and could help preserve the place of midsize farms in the rural landscape. “We’re going to see a sea change in American agriculture as the next generation gets on the land,” said Kathleen Merrigan, the head of the Food Institute at George Washington University and a deputy secretary at the Department of Agriculture under President Barack Obama. “The only question is whether they’ll get on the land, given the challenges.” The number of farmers …
China’s Ceramics Capital Struggles to Adapt Amid War on Smog
The city of Zibo, China’s ceramics capital, is undergoing environmental shock therapy to clear its filthy skies and transform its economy — and not everyone is happy. Much of Zibo’s sprawling industrial district has become a ghost town of shuttered factories, empty showrooms and abandoned restaurants after a cleanup campaign that began last year intensified this winter. Dozens of chimneys stand inactive. “There used to be a lot of workers here, but now they are demolishing the entire place,” said a caretaker who gave his surname as Wei, pointing at the deserted warehouse of an abandoned factory he was guarding. “We have no idea what they will build here — that’s the boss’s decision.” Zibo, home to 4.5 million people about 260 miles south of Beijing in Shandong province, is one of 28 northern Chinese cities targeted in an unprecedented six-month anti-pollution blitz as China scrambles to meet air quality targets. The city is also at the heart of a wider, long-term government effort to upgrade China’s heavy industrial economy. Once responsible for about a quarter of China’s ceramic output, mainly floor and wall tiles, Zibo has slashed capacity by 70 percent and shut more than 150 companies and 250 production lines as part of a ruthless war on pollution. Surviving plants have rushed to comply with tough new standards, but business is still threatened by constant production suspensions ordered by the government, as well as natural gas shortages this winter as northern cities switch to the fuel from coal. “It …
Manhattan Glimmers for the Holidays
Every year, the festive holiday windows of New York City’s department stores draw fans from near and far. Tina Trinh reports. …
Greece, Creditors Agree on New Package of Reforms
Greece’s finance minister said Saturday that an agreement had been reached between the heavily indebted country and its creditors on its progress in implementing reforms. The agreement on the so-called Third Assessment of Greece’s latest bailout program will allow Greece to receive fresh funds next year, after implementing workplace reforms, speeding up the settlement of bad loans, tightening up rules for family subsidies and selling off state-owned power plants. European monetary affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici also announced that a “staff-level agreement” had been reached, meaning that although creditor representatives were involved, the European Union’s finance ministers must approve the agreement, which they are expected to do Monday. Finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos said Greece would have to vote on at least two major bills by January 22 to implement the agreement. …
Risk of Volcanic Ash Cancels Some Bali Flights
Airlines canceled more flights leaving the Indonesian island of Bali on Saturday, citing forecasts of deteriorating flying conditions because of a risk of volcanic ash from the erupting Mount Agung volcano. A Bali airport spokesman said the airport was operating normally, but airlines such as Jetstar and Virgin Australia had opted to cancel some flights. “Bali flying conditions expected to be clear throughout the day, but forecast for tonight has deteriorated so several flights have been canceled,” Australian budget airline Jetstar said on its Twitter account Saturday. Thousands stranded The erupting volcano had closed the airport for much of this week, stranding thousands of visitors from Australia, China and other countries, before the winds changed and flights resumed. Twenty flights were canceled Friday evening because of concerns over ash. Some airlines, including Malaysia’s AirAsia, have said they would only operate out of Bali during the day, because the ash could impair visibility at night and wind conditions in the area were unpredictable. Airlines avoid flying through volcanic ash because it can damage aircraft engines, clogging fuel and cooling systems, hampering pilot visibility and even causing engine failure. There are also concerns over changing weather conditions with a tropical cyclone south of Java island affecting weather and wind in the area, including for Bali, the Indonesian Meteorological, Climatological and Geophysics agency said. Consulates offer aid Several foreign consulates have set up booths in the international departures area to assist stranded passengers. Subrata Sarkar, India’s vice consul in Bali, told Reuters at …
Therapy Robot Suggests Personal Rehab Exercises
Physical therapists can be a vital part of getting injured people back on their feet. But the therapy they recommend can sometimes be less than precise. Some new technology now being used in Italy could be a valuable tool for helping people recover from their injuries. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …
San Diego Opens Giant Tents for Homeless to Battle Hepatitis A Outbreak
The U.S. city of San Diego has opened the first of three large tents that together will house 700 homeless people in an effort to contain an outbreak of hepatitis A that is being spread among the homeless population. About 20 people made the tent their temporary home Friday. The first tent erected will house 350 single men and women. The other two tents, which will open later this month, will be for families and veterans. Bob McElroy of the Alpha Project, the nonprofit group that is operating the tent that opened Friday, said he expects the tent to be filled to capacity by the middle of next week. City officials are using the tents as a way to get people off the streets where they have been living in such poor conditions that it has led to one of the worst outbreaks of hepatitis A in years. The disease, which is spread through feces, has left 20 people dead and sent hundreds to the hospital. The new tents will provide a range of services to the homeless, including help with mental health issues, addiction and employment. The tent grounds also include portable showers and toilets. The tents are not the first of their kind in the city. Officials had previously erected two large tents as winter shelters but took them down two years ago and moved the residents to a local shelter. …
US Officials Drop Mining Cleanup Rule After Industry Objects
President Donald Trump’s administration announced Friday that it won’t require mining companies to prove they have the financial wherewithal to clean up their pollution, despite an industry legacy of abandoned mines that have fouled waterways across the U.S. The move came after mining groups and Western-state Republicans pushed back against a proposal under former President Barack Obama to make companies set aside money for future cleanup costs. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt said modern mining practices and state and federal rules already in place adequately address the risks from mines that are still operating. Requiring more from mining companies was unnecessary, Pruitt said, and “would impose an undue burden on this important sector of the American economy and rural America, where most of these jobs are based.” The U.S. mining industry has a long history of abandoning contaminated sites and leaving taxpayers to foot the bill for cleanups. Thousands of shuttered mines leak contaminated water into rivers, streams and other waterways, including hundreds of cases in which the EPA has intervened, sometimes at huge expense. The EPA spent $1.1 billion on cleanup work at abandoned hard-rock mining and processing sites across the U.S. from 2010 to 2014. Since 1980, at least 52 mines and mine processing sites using modern techniques had spills or other releases of pollution, according to documents released by the EPA last year. In 2015, an EPA cleanup team accidentally triggered a 3-million gallon spill of contaminated water from …
After Flurry of Deals, Senate GOP Passes Tax Bill
Republicans pushed a nearly $1.5 trillion tax bill through the Senate early Saturday after burst of eleventh-hour horse trading, as a party starved all year for a major legislative triumph took a giant step toward giving President Donald Trump one of his top priorities by Christmas. “Big bills are rarely popular. You remember how unpopular Obamacare was when it passed?” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in an interview, shrugging off polls showing scant public enthusiasm for the measure. He said the legislation would prove to be “just what the country needs to get growing again.” Senate approval came on a 51-49 roll call with Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., the only lawmaker to cross party lines. The measure focuses its tax reductions on businesses and higher-earning individuals, gives more modest breaks to others and offers the boldest rewrite of the nation’s tax system since 1986. Corker balks at debt increase Republicans touted the package as one that would benefit people of all incomes and ignite the economy. Even an official projection of a $1 trillion, 10-year flood of deeper budget deficits couldn’t dissuade GOP senators from rallying behind the bill. “Obviously I’m kind of a dinosaur on the fiscal issues,” said Corker, who battled to keep the bill from worsening the government’s accumulated $20 trillion in IOUs. The Republican-led House approved a similar bill last month in what has been a stunningly swift trip through Congress for complex legislation that impacts the breadth of American …
Venezuela Arrests Relative of Powerful ex-Oil Boss Ramirez in Graft Probe
Venezuela has arrested Diego Salazar, a relative of former oil czar Rafael Ramirez, as part of an investigation into a money laundering scandal in Andorra, the South American country’s state prosecutor said on Friday night. President Nicolas Maduro is overseeing what his administration calls a “crusade” against corruption in the member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Some 65 oil executives have been detained in a deepening purge that could also see the leftist leader consolidate his grip over the energy sector and sideline rivals. The Salazar case appears to relate to what the United States in 2015 said were some $2 billion in laundered funds from Venezuelan state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., known as PDVSA, at the private bank Banca Privada D’Andorra (BPA). Saab did not specify Salazar’s role or details on the money laundering, except that it involved around 1.35 billion euros in 2011 and 2012, but he said the case was bound to grow. “I want to highlight that this citizen will likely not be the only one detained and the only one investigated,” Saab said in a phone call to state television announcing the arrest. The arrest is bound to cast the spotlight on Ramirez, who was the powerful head of PDVSA and the oil ministry for a decade before Maduro demoted him as a envoy to the United Nations in 2014. A protracted rivalry between Maduro and Ramirez has increased in the recent weeks, sources close to the situation said …
Health Care Fallout: Fate of 8M Low-Income US Children in Limbo
TC Bell knows what life is like without health insurance after growing up with a mother who cobbled together care from a public health clinic, emergency room visits and off-the-books visits to a doctor they knew. That memory makes Bell, of Denver, grateful for the coverage his two daughters have now under the Children’s Health Insurance Program — and concerned about its uncertain future in Congress. “There’s an incredible security that I have with CHIP,” said Bell, 30, who has gone back to community college to reboot his life after working a series of low-paying jobs. “If my daughters get sick or seriously injured, we can take them to their doctor, rather than when I was growing and had to go through the emergency room. We always kept our fingers crossed back then.” Political stalemate CHIP provides low-cost coverage to children in families that earn too much to qualify for Medicaid. But it has become caught up in a political stalemate over how to fund it. Congress failed to reauthorize the program before it expired in September. Several states are expected to deplete their remaining funds for it by next month. The uncertainty has left states scrambling — and causing worries for families that depend on the program. “The fact that they want to play politics with our kids’ health care is appalling,” Bell said. “All we’re asking for is an investment, not a handout. CHIP was built for the working class.” Different situations for each states Each state designs …
Peru Prosecutors Ask to Jail Executives Linked to Odebrecht
A Peruvian prosecutor asked a judge to jail executives of three local construction companies that had previously partnered with Brazilian builder Odebrecht, which has admitted to paying bribes in the country, chief prosecutor Pablo Sanchez said on Friday. Prosecutors started investigating the five executives of Grana y Montero, JJC Contratistas Generales and Ingenieros Civiles y Contratistas Generales (ICCGSA) earlier this week. The five are accused of paying bribes to win a highway construction contract in southern Peru along with Odebrecht. Peru has aggressively investigated bribery allegations linked to scandal-plagued Odebrecht and former President Ollanta Humala was jailed earlier this year following accusations he took illegal campaign donations from the firm. Prosecutor Hamilton Castro made the jail request this morning, Sanchez told reporters at a business conference in Paracas, south of Lima. ICCGSA said in a statement none of its shareholders or employees had knowledge of the alleged acts of corruption and said it was willing to collaborate with investigators. Grana y Montero and JJC Contratistas Generales did not immediately respond to request for comment. Last month, prosecutors said they were investigating Grana for alleged involvement in bribes that Odebrecht has admitted paying to local officials in exchange for lucrative contracts. Grana’s shares in Lima have fallen more than 60 percent this year on concerns over the probe. Shares were down 5.6 percent at 1.84 soles ($0.5690) per share on Friday afternoon. The company has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and said an internal probe turned up no evidence that its employees …
Cuba Battling Medicine Shortages in Wake of Cash Crunch
Cuba is working on fixing chronic medicine shortages that started appearing a year ago due to its cash crunch, health officials said in an article published late on Thursday in ruling Communist Party newspaper Granma. Cuba’s healthcare system, built by late leader Fidel Castro, is one of the revolution’s most treasured achievements, having produced results on a par with rich nations using the resources of a developing country and in spite of the decades-old U.S. trade embargo. But more than 85 percent of the resources its pharmaceutical industry uses are imported, BioCubaFarma Director of Operations Rita Maria García Almaguer was cited as saying in Granma, and Cuba has been struggling to pay foreign providers. Lower exports and aid from key socialist ally Venezuela caused a liquidity crisis that prompted Havana last year to slash imports, helping tip it into recession. Medicine production therefore stalled in 2016 and some of 2017 due to lack of inputs, according to GarcÃa Almaguer. “The production of some forms of pharmaceuticals was stalled because the resources were not available on time, which means we were unable to fulfill the demands of the national health system,” she was quoted as saying. Many common medicines, for example contraceptives or those treating hypertension, have been scarce or lacking altogether over the past year, Granma wrote. BioCubaFarma and the government had been working together since the start of last year to fix the issue and ensure the availability of at least one medicine per pharmacological group, GarcÃa Almaguer said. …
First Baby from a Uterus Transplant in US Born in Dallas
The first birth as a result of a womb transplant in the United States has occurred in Texas, a milestone for the U.S. but one achieved several years ago in Sweden. A woman who had been born without a uterus gave birth to the baby at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. Hospital spokesman Craig Civale confirmed Friday that the birth had taken place, but said no other details are available. The hospital did not identify the woman, citing her privacy. Baylor has had a study under way for several years to enroll up to 10 women for uterus transplants. In October 2016, the hospital said four women had received transplants but that three of the wombs had to be removed because of poor blood flow. The hospital would give no further information on how many transplants have been performed since then. But Time magazine, which first reported the U.S. baby’s birth, says eight have been done in all, and that another woman is currently pregnant as a result. A news conference was scheduled Monday to discuss the Dallas baby’s birth. A doctor in Sweden, Mats Brannstrom, is the first in the world to deliver a baby as a result of a uterus transplant. As of last year, he had delivered five babies from women with donated wombs. There have been at least 16 uterus transplants worldwide, including one in Cleveland from a deceased donor that had to be removed because of complications. Last month, Penn Medicine in Philadelphia announced …
Dazzling Egg Fossils Crack Open Secrets of Ancient Flying Reptiles
A dazzling discovery in northwestern China of hundreds of fossilized pterosaur eggs is providing fresh understanding of these flying reptiles that lived alongside the dinosaurs, including evidence that their babies were born flightless and needed parental care. Scientists said Thursday that they had unearthed 215 eggs of the fish-eating Hamipterus tianshanensis — a species whose adults had a crest atop an elongated skull, pointy teeth and a wingspan of more than 11 feet (3.5 meters) — including 16 eggs containing partial embryonic remains. Fossils of hundreds of male and female adult Hamipterus individuals were found alongside juveniles and eggs at the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region site, making this Cretaceous Period species that lived 120 million years ago perhaps the best understood of all pterosaurs. “We want to call this region ‘Pterosaur Eden,’ ” said paleontologist Shunxing Jiang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology. Pterosaurs were Earth’s first flying vertebrates. Birds and bats appeared later. Until now, no pterosaur eggs had been found with embryos preserved in three dimensions. Researchers think up to 300 eggs may be present at the Xinjiang Uygur site, some buried under the exposed fossils. The embryonic bones indicated the hind legs of a baby Hamipterus developed more rapidly than crucial wing elements like the humerus bone, said paleontologist Alexander Kellner of Museu Nacional in Rio de Janeiro. “Some birds can fly on the same day they break out from the egg, while some others will need a long period of …
Virtual Reality Allows Patients to Preview Their Own Surgery
Most of us would be shocked and afraid if a doctor told us we needed brain surgery. But imagine how much calmer you’d be if you could get inside your skull to navigate the path the surgeon will take? Technology can now make that happen. VOA’s Carolyn Presutti takes us to the Stanford Medical Center in Silicon Valley to see how virtual reality can get patients into their own heads. …
Los Angeles About to Embark on a Smart City Experiment
As the U.S. Supreme Court considers a case about privacy and technology, Los Angeles, California, is becoming a city that is ever more connected. From cell phones to televisions to refrigerators, more devices are being connected to the Internet. L.A. wants to use the prevalence of these “smart” devices to help the city run more efficiently, turning it into a city of the future. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee has the details of the project and the security and privacy implications of a more connected city. …
Replacing Lymph Nodes After Cancer Treatment Can Restore Mobility
A small number of U.S. hospitals are now offering surgery to replace lymph nodes lost in cancer treatment. The new nodes are aimed at alleviating pain and discomfort by draining the fluids that cause limbs to swell up. Faith Lapidus reports. …
Dozens of Runners Compete in Antarctica’s Only Marathon
Something extraordinary happened last week at the bottom of the world: 55 very determined, possibly crazy people participated in a marathon on the continent of Antarctica. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …
Senate Republicans Postpone Vote on US Tax Overhaul
Senate Republicans delayed a final vote on an overhaul of the U.S. tax code late Thursday amid furious, behind-the-scenes efforts to fine-tune the legislation to satisfy a small group of fiscal hawks whose support is needed to pass one of President Donald Trump’s core campaign promises. “Senators will continue to debate the bill tonight,” Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said, adding that further votes pertaining to the tax bill would occur later Friday. Only hours earlier, Republicans appeared poised to pass a massive restructuring of federal taxes and deal a stinging defeat to Democrats. Several wavering Republicans had signaled support for the bill, including John McCain of Arizona. Late in the day, however, three Republicans, led by Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, clung to a demand that proposed tax cuts would be pared back if future U.S. economic performance did not meet projections. Republicans have a two-seat Senate majority. Three defections from their ranks would torpedo the bill, given unified Democratic opposition. With time needed to rewrite portions of the bill to satisfy the Corker contingent, Republican leaders opted to postpone further votes. Details of plan The underlying proposal would permanently cut corporate taxes, temporarily cut taxes on wages and salaries, boost some tax deductions Americans can claim while eliminating others, and increase the U.S. national debt, which currently is more than $20 trillion. The nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation issued a report Thursday estimating the Republican plan would sap federal coffers by more than $1 trillion over …
Venezuelan Airline Barred from European Union Skies
Venezuela’s Avior Airlines has been banned from European Union skies after a commission determined it no longer meets international safety standards, another blow to troubled nation’s already beleaguered flight industry. The European Commission announced Thursday that Avior had been added to a list of international airlines prohibited from flying within the union because the European Aviation Safety Agency detected “unaddressed safety deficiencies.” No further details were provided. The Venezuelan airline is one of a handful still offering international flight destinations as major carriers like United and Delta halt operations in the crisis-ridden nation. Air carriers have cited financial and safety concerns as reasons for suspending service. An Avior flight made an emergency landing in Ecuador earlier this month after passengers described seeing fire and smelling smoke. Videos posted on social media showed nervous passengers wearing deployed oxygen masks. “We thought it was our final moments,” one passenger said. Avior operates flights within Venezuela, throughout Latin America and to Miami, Florida, and lists an office location in Madrid on its website. The airline is certified under U.S. federal aviation regulations and Venezuela remains in good standing with the International Aviation Safety Assessment, the Federal Aviation Administration’s program to determine whether foreign countries provide sufficient safety and oversight of airlines that fly to the U.S. Venezuela has grown increasingly isolated as an expanding list of airlines cancel service amid low customer demand and financial distress. The head of the International Air Transport Association has said that Venezuela owes $3.8 billion to several …
Record-setting Atlantic Hurricane Season Ends
The 2017 Atlantic hurricane season has finally ended In all, 17 named storms swept across the Atlantic this year and 10 rose to hurricane status. But the season will be remembered for the deadly trio — Harvey, Irma and Maria — that brought death and destruction to Caribbean nations and the southern U.S. This was the first year on record in which the continental United States was hit by two Category 4 hurricanes, Harvey and Irma. Harvey made landfall in South Texas on August 25, leading to days of downpours that dumped an unprecedented 152 centimeters (60 inches) of rain. It was the greatest rainfall amount recorded from a single storm in U.S. history. Harvey also damaged or destroyed about 200,000 homes as the storm system flooded much of Houston and smaller coastal communities. Then, on September 11 came Irma — the strongest storm on record in the Atlantic, outside the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. With maximum winds of nearly 300 kilometers an hour, Irma destroyed the Caribbean island of Barbuda, shredded vast sections of the Virgin Islands and knocked out power in much of Florida. September also saw the arrival of Hurricanes Jose, Katia and Lee, before Category 4 Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico on September 20. It was the U.S. territory’s strongest hurricane landfall since 1928. With sustained winds of 250 kilometers per hour, Maria knocked out power across the island, causing the biggest blackout in U.S. history. The island is still struggling to …