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This is VOA news. I'm David Byrd.
Twenty-one people on board a Princess cruise ship that has been denied entry to San Francisco harbor have tested positive for the coronavirus. Speaking at the White House, Vice President Mike Pence said most of those who tested positive were members of the crew. "Twenty-one individuals on the Grand Princess tested positive. Among those were 19 crew members and two passengers." Pence said the ship would be directed toward a non-commercial port where all on board, about 3,500 people, would be tested for the virus. State and local officials had acted to halt the cruise liner from docking after learning that several people on board had become ill and two passengers who traveled on the same vessel last month tested positive for the virus. One of them, an elderly man from near Sacramento, California, with underlying health conditions, died this week. Meanwhile earlier Friday, President Donald Trump signed a bill providing $8.3 billion to fight the virus outbreak in the United States. President Trump toured devastated areas near Nashville reduced to rubble by a deadly tornado earlier this week. AP's Ed Donahue has more. The president pointed out people in Putnam County have already started rebuilding. "We love 'em, they're special people. It's an incredible place, incredible state, tremendous heart." The tornado tore two-mile path through the county. The president said there was little warning. "They get a phone call, 'Hey, there's a tornado,' and boom, it's on them." President Trump met with survivors at a local church. "We are with you all the way and thank you very much for all you've been doing ...." Governor Bill Lee says Tennessee is living up to its name, the volunteer state, with people showing up by the thousands to provide assistance. I'm Ed Donahue. This is VOA news. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for an attack in Kabul on Friday that killed at least 32 people. Reuters' Sarah Charlton reports it's the first major attack on the Afghan capital since the United States reached an agreement with the Taliban to withdraw U.S. troops. Gunshots were broadcast live on local TV Friday as the gathering to mark the death of an ethnic leader turned to chaos. More than 50 people were injured in the largest attack on civilians in a year. Top Afghan political leader, Abdullah Abdullah, was at the event but escaped unharmed. The Taliban said they were not involved in the attack, but it's another deadly reminder of Afghanistan's fragile state. Several people were killed in a similar attack on the same commemoration last year, which Islamic State said it carried out. The United States has tried to spearhead efforts toward a lasting peace arrangement in Afghanistan. Violence decreased before a deal was implemented last Saturday to withdraw troops though the Taliban has since resumed attacks on Afghan forces. That's Sarah Charlton of Reuters. Syria's war-battered Idlib region was quiet but tense on Friday as a cease-fire deal between Moscow and Ankara took effect. But as Reuters' Soraya Ali reports the truce did have some fragile parts. At least 15 people were killed in fighting between government forces and jihadist insurgents, the Syrian Observatory war monitor said. Idlib has been the center of a tug of war in recent weeks, with Moscow and Ankara, which back opposing sides in the war, edging closer to direct confrontation. Shaky cease-fires that bring relative calm have punctuated Syria's nine-year war but all have collapsed. For this deal Russia and Turkey have agreed to set up a security corridor along Idlib's main highway and to conduct joint patrols. But many say this isn't enough. It didn't establish a safe zone or say how nearly a million people displaced in the last three months could return to their homes. That's Soraya Ali of Reuters. Organizers have canceled this year's South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, because of the coronavirus. AP's Jackie Quinn reports. If you are thinking of going to the popular South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, next week, bad news. It's been canceled. Travis County officials say they don't want to risk triggering an outbreak. Big companies like Netflix and TikTok had already pulled out. President Trump was asked about the big crowds for his campaign rallies, "I haven't had any problems filling them. We just had one in North Carolina, South Carolina, all of the place ...." He says he doesn't mind his supporters in close quarters together and says they don't either. That's Jackie Quinn reporting. I'm David Byrd, VOA news. |