https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_07/
The World Health Organization has repeated that the antiviral drug remdesivir appears to have little or no effect as a treatment for COVID-19.
WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan referred to the drug at a regular news conference on Friday.
The US Food and Drug Administration approved remdesivir as a treatment for COVID-19 on Thursday. The drug has also been granted authorization for emergency use in some countries, including Japan.
On October 15, the WHO announced the interim results of its clinical trial of remdesivir, saying the drug appears to have little or no ability to prevent death from COVID-19 or reduce time in hospital.
Swaminathan said the results of the trial have not been reflected in the FDA's decision to approve the drug.
She said the trial is the biggest to date, and the results are robust, as the data analysis and other elements have been performed to the highest standards.
Another WHO official in charge of clinical care said the agency will issue guidance on the use of remdesivir in three to four weeks.
Key words : France 1 million
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_09/
The number of coronavirus infections in France has passed 1 million, making it the second European country after Spain to reach that figure as Europe battles a resurgence of the pandemic.
The French health ministry announced on Friday that the daily tally of new infections was more than 42,000, bringing the country's cumulative total to over 1 million.
The government introduced a night-time curfew in Paris and other parts of the country last week in response to the recent spike in cases.
President Emmanuel Macron said the impact of the measures will begin to show next week. He said it's too early to say whether France will go into a second full lockdown.
Meanwhile, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has released a new assessment of the state of the pandemic in 31 countries, taking in EU members and their neighbors.
The report classifies 25 countries, including France, Spain, and Italy, as having epidemiological situations of "serious concern." It says these countries are reporting increases in cases among older age groups, in addition to substantial increases among younger people.
The report also says data on ICU admissions and occupancies shows the situation is deteriorating.
It says efforts by governments to halt the spread of the virus appear to be falling short, and calls on them to introduce more stringent restrictions.
Key words : Jamaica
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_04/
Jamaica and Nauru have ratified the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, bringing the pact just one member short of the 50 it needs to take effect.
The two countries made the announcement on Friday.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN, expressed optimism that the 50th ratification will come soon.
The treaty was adopted at a UN conference in 2017. It bans the development, possession and use of nuclear weapons, and says using them violates international law.
The treaty, which is designed to take effect 90 days after gaining a 50th ratification, would be the first to prohibit nuclear weapons.
Nuclear powers including the United States, Russia and China have not joined. Japan, which relies on the US nuclear umbrella, also has not.
Key words : NGO publish
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_02/
A group comprising Japanese NGO members and students has launched a campaign urging the government to join the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
The group made the announcement in an online event on Friday. Its members are asking Diet legislators and prefectural governors if they favor the treaty. Their views will then be published online.
The group says 17 percent of Diet lawmakers favor the treaty. It hopes to boost the figure to 30 percent by the end of the year.
Kawasaki Akira, the head of the group and a member of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, said there is a huge difference between the Diet and the public, which mostly favors the treaty.
Kawasaki said he hopes Japan ratifies the treaty after public interest in the issue prompts a change in opinion among lawmakers.
The treaty almost has the 50 signatories it needs to take effect. But the Japanese government has indicated it will not join. It says the treaty will not lead to nuclear disarmament.
Key words : US space
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_11/
The US space agency has confirmed it has collected rocks and dust from the surface of an asteroid 330 million kilometers from Earth.
The NASA space probe OSIRIS-REx landed on the asteroid Bennu on Tuesday.
NASA announced on Friday that images sent from the craft indicate it has collected "more than enough material to meet one of its main mission requirements -- acquiring at least 60 grams of the asteroid's surface material."
The mission makes OSIRIS-REx the third space probe to collect asteroid samples after Japan's Hayabusa and Hayabusa2.
The images also show rocks and dust floating around the sample collector. NASA says fragments of material escaped through gaps under the lid of the collector, which was wedged open by larger rocks. The agency said it would act swiftly to preserve the remaining material.
If everything goes to plan, the probe will leave Bennu in March next year and return to Earth with the samples in September 2023.
Scientists hope the material will shed light on the origins of life on Earth and the birth of the solar system.
Key words : learned refund
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_05/
NHK has learned that the organizing committee for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics plans to offer refunds for tickets sold in Japan. A formal decision is expected to be announced soon.
The Games are set to take place next year, having been postponed this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Sources say the committee plans to give refunds because people may be unable to attend due to the postponement.
They say ticket refunds would be accepted for about 20 days from around November 10 for the Olympics, and for about 20 days in December for the Paralympics.
About 4.48 million Olympic tickets and about 970,000 Paralympic tickets have been sold in Japan. The committee has said they are still valid despite the postponement because the schedules are the same.
The committee also said it will need to assess the situation regarding the pandemic to determine whether spectator numbers can remain as planned.
Key words : clean
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_01/
Japan is sending a fact-finding team to Mauritius to determine what kind of assistance is necessary to help the local environment and fishing industry recover from a huge oil spill.
The bulk carrier Wakashio, which was registered in Panama and chartered by the Japanese shipping firm Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, ran aground off the coast of the Indian Ocean nation in July. It leaked huge amounts of oil.
The 16-member team, which includes fisheries experts and officials from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, will leave Japan on Saturday. Over the course of two months, it is expected to work with people in the local fishing industry, and also examine oil-stricken corals and mangrove forests.
The Japanese government has already sent emergency teams to Mauritius to conduct cleanup operations and assessments of the ecological damage.
Key words : court abortion
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_06/
Poland's top court has ruled the termination of fetuses with congenital defects to be unconstitutional, bringing the country closer to a near total ban on abortions.
The Constitutional Tribunal's decision on Thursday prompted women's rights protests in the capital Warsaw.
Once the ruling becomes law, abortions will be available to even fewer women, such as those who become pregnant due to rape.
Interventions into the Polish judicial system have become more frequent since 2015, when the conservative Law and Justice party came to power.
A growing number of people view the ruling camp's appointments of justices for the constitutional court as problematic.
Key words : united nation libya
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201024_03/
The United Nations says both sides of the conflict in Libya have signed a permanent ceasefire.
The country has been divided since the collapse of Muammar al-Qadhafi's dictatorship in 2011. The interim government is based in the capital Tripoli, in the west. The east is controlled by a military organization.
The UN, which has mediated peace negotiations, says the two sides agreed in Switzerland on Friday to jointly monitor the ceasefire and move foreign mercenaries out of the country within three months.
Previous ceasefires have frequently been abandoned.
Stephanie Williams, the world body's representative in the country, welcomed the latest agreement.
She told reporters on Friday that it "can help secure a better, more secure and peaceful future for all the Libyan people."
The two sides are expected to hold talks in neighboring Tunisia early next month about political solutions, including an election.
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