WHO Calls for ‘Global Solidarity’ on World AIDS Day to Beat HIV, COVID-19 Outbreaks

Although Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) was first detected more than 40 years ago, the illness continues to infect and kill millions of people around the globe. Its persistence serves as a grim reminder that epidemic illnesses aren’t defeated overnight or without concerted effort.

Health organizations around the globe commemorated World AIDS Day on Tuesday, and commentators called attention to the parallels between the darkest days of that epidemic and the present COVID-19 pandemic. They noted that while the COVID-19 pandemic might have delayed the world’s 2020 AIDS-fighting goals by as many as 10 years, the fight against COVID-19 hasn’t suffered the same challenges of awareness and funding as AIDS has.

2020 Goals Delayed By A Decade

The World Health Organization (WHO) noted that worldwide in 2019, there were 38 million people with HIV, but one-fifth did not know their status. That year, 1.7 million new cases were reported, and 690,000 people died from complications of the illness.

However, the UN-affiliated health agency warns, the demands of the COVID-19 pandemic have placed greater strains on health systems in the developing world, including dominating the concerns of health workers and interfering with supply chains.

“Now is the time for us to once again make a leap in our response to work together to end COVID-19 and get back on track to end HIV by 2030,” the agency wrote. “On World AIDS Day 2020, WHO is calling on global leaders and citizens to rally for ‘global solidarity’ to overcome the challenges posed by COVID-19 on the HIV response.”

Those goals are known as “90-90-90” - 90% of people with HIV know their status, 90% of people with HIV are receiving treatment, and 90% of people receiving treatment are achieving viral suppression using pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) drugs like Truvada, which is made by Gilead Sciences.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) echoed the WHO’s call, warning that “we cannot underestimate the impact of disruptions related to COVID-19 on healthcare system delivery and services particularly in resource-limited settings,” such as sub-Saharan Africa.

“As programs adapted to COVID-19, HIV treatment was prioritized. Now, we must plan for the rapid recovery and resumption of HIV testing and prevention services – in a responsible and safe way given the current landscape and building from what we have learned during this pandemic,” the CDC said in a Monday statement. Testing and treatment programs in the region are heavily funded by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a 2005 initiative begun by then-US President George W. Bush.

https://sputniknews.com/society/202012011081330233-who-calls-for-global-solidarity-on-world-aids-day-to-beat-hiv-covid-19-outbreaks/

Chinese Company That Bought Australian Island Reportedly Squeezing Residents Out

China Bloom, a Chinese developer company, bought a 99-year lease on a portion of Keswick Island, in central east Queensland, in 2019, according to The Daily Mail. Since that time, reports have emerged that locals have been disappointed with the new management of the island and are concerned about its ecological future.

A Chinese developer has been preventing residents of Australia's Keswick island from setting foot on their home turf after the firm purchased a lease to the land, according to multiple media reports.

Locals are reportedly banned from renting their properties or promoting them on Airbnb, as their access to the beaches has been limited as well. According to reports, families say that the new Chinese owner is killing tourism on the island, restricting boats from approaching the island and aircraft from entering its airspace in what is seen as an attempt to make the island an exclusive tourist spot for visitors from Beijing only.

"I just don't think they want Australians on the island," former resident Julie Willis told Australian news program A Current Affair. "I think that they want to have this island solely for the use of the Chinese tourism market."

Willis revealed that she and her partner Robert Lee were told to vacate their property on the island that they have been renting for six years - with China Bloom claiming that they would now have to pay 100,000 AUD ($70,000) as a deposit if they wanted to purchase the property.

"I think they're trying to deter us from buying the property. They don't want us here", Willis observed.

Rayna Asbury, a landlord on the island, told 'A Current Affair' that no tourists have visited the island since September 2019. According to the report, access restriction was extended to the waters of Basil Bay beach and even a national park that covers 80 percent of the island's 550 hectares.

According to reports, China Bloom is excavating on the island, potentially damaging the environment. The Daily Mail noted in its report that Australian agents of China Bloom, Greaton Holdings, is behind several massive construction projects across the country, particularly hotels and residential buildings in Sydney's Darling Harbour, McLaren Vale, Adelaide and Sydney.

The Department of Resources said in a statement, cited by A Current Affair, that its responsibility "is to work with both the head lessee China Bloom and sublessees to ensure all relevant activities are in accordance with the terms of the lease, particularly as China Bloom works to upgrade the island's roads, boat ramps, jetties and marine infrastructure".

Since September, locals have become concerned about the ecological future of the island, arguing that the excavation of the shoreline and restriction of access to the national park raises concerns regarding the Chinese company's environmental footprint.

Asbury, cited by ABC News AU, said she was particularly shocked to discover that Basil Bay, a known turtle nesting location, had been widely excavated.

A Department of Environment and Science spokesperson, however, cited by A Current Affair, claimed that their Department found no evidence of a permanent negative environmental impact to the habitat.

"Officers from the Department of Environment and Science investigated beach areas where island management had conducted works and did not observe any evidence of turtle nests or permanent impact to habitat", the statement reportedly said.

According to reports, the lease to Keswick island territories was purchased by China Bloom in 2019. There have been no official statements released by the Chinese company.

https://sputniknews.com/asia/202012011081329539-chinese-company-that-bought-australian-island-reportedly-squeezing-residents-out/

GRAPHIC: 18 Shot During Cartel Shootout at Bar in Mexico

A fierce shootout inside a bar killed two individuals and seriously injured 16 more in the latest episode of violence to take place in Michoacán.

The shootout happened over the weekend in Uruapan when gunmen riding in several SUVs pulled up to a bar called Alex Junior to carry out a kidnapping. When the gunmen arrived, several men inside the bar pulled out various weapons setting off a fierce shootout.

After an almost 20-minute shootout, the gunmen fled the scene. By the time emergency personnel and police arrived, they found two deceased males and 10 more men and women with various gunshot injuries.

At least six other shooting victims made their way to private clinics in Uruapan. One was identified as the wife of one of the sons of Los Viagras leader Nicolas “El Gordo” Sierra Santana. Los Viagras and other smaller criminal organizations have joined into a bloc called Carteles Unidos against Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion.

In recent days, both factions have waged a series of fierce battles in the hilly areas of Michoacán where CJNG is working to wrest Tepalcatepec from former self-defense group leader-turned-drug lord Juan Jose “El Abuelo” Alvarez Farias. After claiming to be a self-defense leader, Farias sided with CJNG but in recent months had a falling out. That split has created an war for control of the region.

https://www.breitbart.com/border/2020/12/01/graphic-18-shot-during-cartel-shootout-at-bar-in-mexico/

Down the Bitcoin Funnel: The Tech Firms Driving Investors to Ruin with Fake Celebrity News

Supercharged by Google and Facebook, a flood of fake news stories touting get-rich-quick schemes are funneling hopeful Bitcoin investors toward dubious brokers and organized criminals.

Key findings

Fake cryptocurrency trading software is being used to harvest the contact details of potential customers for unscrupulous investment brokers.

A London-based company used fake celebrity endorsements from famous faces like singer Adele and Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford to direct investors to brokers, some of which are offshore and subject to official U.K. warnings.

Ads Inc, a San Diego-based tech firm that urged its staff to "do good things," made huge profits pushing thousands of ads promoting fake cryptocurrency investment platforms.

While Facebook says it is cracking down on these ads, reporters have discovered that the social media giant remains awash with them.

Google, which has so far endured less criticism than Facebook for its role in pushing these ads, has taken tens of millions of dollars this year from questionable brokers and investment review websites.

Ingrid Hernvall was scrolling through Facebook when she saw exciting news.

It was a story — laid out just like an article in a proper newspaper — featuring two of Sweden’s biggest television personalities. The two men spoke of a fantastic new Bitcoin investment opportunity that was almost certain to make you rich.

fraud-factory/False-Ad-Filip-Hammars.jpg

Credit: DN

A fake news advertisement featuring Swedish television personality Filip Hammar, similar to the one spotted by Ingrid Hernvall.

Her daughter had seen the same “article.” Both women trusted the TV stars, Fredrik Skavlan and Filip Hammar, and were intrigued by the prospect of making so much money. Hernvall, 57, is a ceramic artist in Stockholm, while her daughter had spent long stretches out of work due to illness.

When her daughter clicked through and quickly started to make money — at least virtually — Hernvall was convinced. She took the plunge and invested the proceeds of the sale of her house, which represented her life’s savings.

It took her four months to realize she’d been duped. By then, she had lost over US$300,000.

The “news story” she’d seen was one among hundreds of thousands of fabricated advertorials claiming celebrity endorsements of get-rich-quick schemes that do not exist.

Those drawn in by the familiar faces and promises of wealth are redirected to brokers. Some of these are licensed, but many are questionable, and in some cases they are downright criminal, harassing their victims until they agree to pay up.

This is what happened to Hernvall. Entering her contact information on a website earned her a call from a smooth-talking salesman, who kept insisting the story about Bitcoin was true and she’d make a fortune — if she just kept sending him money.

“You know the whole time that everything is wrong,” she recalled. “But it goes so fast and you don’t have time to stop and reflect.”

https://www.occrp.org/en/fraud-factory/down-the-bitcoin-funnel-the-tech-firms-driving-investors-to-ruin-with-fake-celebrity-news