(2022-04-14). Thai opposition leader Thanathorn indicted of royal defamation for questioning vaccine management. peoplesdispatch.org The charges leveled against opposition leader Thanathorn were based on statements he made in January 2021 in a livestream that questioned the vaccine procurement contract and subsidies granted to a pharmaceutical company owned privately by the monarch…
(2022-04-14). Spain Morenoite CRT denounce China's "Zero COVID" strategy. wsws.org Throughout the pandemic the Morenoites have aligned themselves with the policy of the Socialist Party (PSOE)-Podemos government, putting profits ahead of lives.
(2022-04-13). COVID-19 still a global health emergency despite drop in cases, deaths: WHO. ecns.cn As the number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths continues to decline, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday that the pandemic remains a public health emergency, advising countries to be prepared to scale up COVID-19 response rapidly.
(2022-04-13). HKSAR chief executive says 3-day rapid antigen test exercise meets expectations. ecns.cn Carrie Lam on Wednesday said the three-day mass rapid antigen test (RAT) exercise had achieved its intended goals of better understanding the overall COVID-19 situation in Hong Kong.
(2022-04-14). La estrategia cubana de desarrollo de vacunas contra la covid-19 sigue avanzando. cubadebate.cu Cuba diseñó su propia estrategia para lograr vacunas seguras y efectivas contra la COVID-19. Como resultado se obtuvo el Autorizo de Uso de Emergencia (AUE) de tres de los cinco candidatos vacunales. Las vacunas Soberana-02, Soberana Plus y Abdala, fueron usadas en la vacunación masiva de nuestra población a partir de los dos años de edad. Las vacunas cubanas han permitido controlar la pandemia Covid-19 en nuestro país.
(2022-04-13). Chinese scientists find molecular pathway for critical COVID-19 cases. ecns.cn An international team led by Chinese researchers has identified a molecular pathway that intensifies the severity of critical COVID-19 cases, lending clues to potential treatment for such cases.
(2022-04-13). Chinese mainland reports 2,999 new local confirmed COVID-19 cases. ecns.cn The Chinese mainland Wednesday reported 2,999 locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases, of which 2,573 were in Shanghai, according to the National Health Commission's report Thursday.
(2022-04-13). Shanghai moves to regulate community group buying as prices jacked up. ecns.cn Shanghai's market regulator said on Wednesday it had taken actions to regulate community group-buying services, on which the bulk of quarantined residents rely in the virus-stricken city, and punished businesses for jacking up prices when people are in dire need of basic supplies.
(2022-04-13). Subway shooting in Brooklyn seized on by New York mayor to boost law-and-order campaign. wsws.org Despite the clear correlation with the pandemic, the relative increase in gun violence over the last two years is being used to justify moves to expand and intensify police activities while at the same time removing the few remaining measures to combat COVID-19, just as the next wave, driven by the BA.2 variant, is accelerating.
(2022-04-13). Putting The Shanghai Lockdown Into Context: China Sees This As A Bioweapon. southfront.org 
Click to see full-size image | Written by Over the course of the past 10 days, I have noticed that many smart folks are freaking out over the events in Shanghai. | I'm not sure why people have forgotten that the Chinese government has been in Defcon-2 since the start of the pandemic over two years ago treating this like a US bio terror attack targetting Han chinese who have been struck disproportionately by this thing from the get go for whi…
(2022-04-13). Let Us Now Praise Amazon Unionists. orinocotribune.com 
By Chris Hedges — Apr 6, 2022 | The only way to halt the global assault on the human rights of workers is to unionize. | Let us honor those workers who stood up to Amazon, especially Chris Smalls, described by Amazon's chief counsel as "not smart, or articulate," who led a walkout at the Amazon warehouse at Staten Island JFK8 in New York at the beginning of the pandemic two years ago to protest unsafe working conditions. He was immediately fired. | Amazon's high-priced lawyers, however, were in for a surprise. Smalls unionized the first Amazon warehouse in the country. He, along with his co-founder Derrick…
(2022-04-13). If Wage Growth Is Driving Inflation, Why Is Workers' Share of Income Falling? cepr.net 
It is very hard to make the wage-price spiral inflation story from the 1970s fit the current situation for a simple reason: the wage share of income has fallen sharply since the pandemic.
(2022-04-13). US orders non-emergency staff out of Shanghai consulate as a provocation against Zero-COVID policy. wsws.org The high-level maneuvers between Washington and Beijing are underway as Shanghai public health officials have begun to stabilize the worst COVID-19 outbreak since the start of the pandemic and are attempting to ease harsh restrictions where appropriate.
(2022-04-13). Corporate Profiteers Are Driving Inflation. It Hurts Poorer Countries Most. truthout.org The U.S. Labor Department said Tuesday inflation in the United States rose to 8.5% in March — the highest in four decades. Meanwhile, Oxfam is warning over 260 million people around the world could be pushed into extreme poverty by the end of year due to the pandemic and rising energy and food costs. For more on the growing inflation crisis, we speak with economist Jayati Ghosh, who says prices of essentials are soaring much higher than can be explained by oil prices and supply shortages alone, because of what she calls "feverish speculation" in financial markets and corporate profiteering. She also speaks…
(2022-04-13). How artificial intelligence helps students learn. america.cgtn.com 
It's been a challenging time for schools and students around the world. Many studies have shown a drop in test scores during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. But some educators believe there may be a new tool ready to help rejuvenate …
(2022-04-13). La Organización Mundial de la Salud mantiene propagación de la covid-19 en nivel de pandemia. cubadebate.cu "No es el momento de bajar la guardia", dijo este miércoles el director general de la Organización Mundial de la Salud, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, al informar sobre la decisión de mantener la propagación de la covid-19 en el nivel de pandemia declarado el 11 de marzo de 2020, cuando los casos superaban la cifra de 100 000 en más de 100 países.
(2022-04-13). A socialist program of action for the working class to oppose war and fight COVID-19 and austerity. wsws.org The Socialist Equality Party is standing candidates in the Australian federal election to provide workers with the political weapons and organisational means to fight for their social and democratic rights.
(2022-04-13). Academia de Ciencias de Cuba otorga premio nacional a Instituto de Medicina Tropical Pedro Kourí. cubadebate.cu La Academia de Ciencias de Cuba otorgó al Instituto de Medicina Tropical Pedro Kourí el premio nacional al resultado de la investigación científica por su aporte en el enfrentamiento a la covid-19. El IPK tuvo una efectiva labor en el diagnóstico y tratamiento, la capacitación y la preparación de labotatorios en el país y el desarrollo de protocolos de atención.
(2022-04-13). Habrá dosis de refuerzo para adolescentes y jóvenes entre los 12 y los 18 años de edad (+ Video). cubadebate.cu La dirección del país y las autoridades sanitarias consensuaron la conveniencia de aplicar la primera dosis de refuerzo con las vacunas cubanas anti-COVID-19, a adolescentes y jóvenes en las edades comprendidas entre los 12 y 18 años de edad que hayan cumplido seis meses del esquema completo de la primo-vacunación.
(2022-04-13). Military Situation In Palestine On April 13, 2022 (Map Update). southfront.org 
Click to see full-size image | On April 13, Palestinian factions held a meeting in the office of the head of Hamas in Gaza to discuss the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people; | On April 12, the IDF arrested 20 Palestinians in overnight raids in the West Bank; | On April 13, two Palestinians were shot and arrested by the IDF in the Kahdouri university in Tulkaram; | On April 12, a young Palestinian was killed and 10 others were wounded by Israeli forces in the city of Nablus, according…