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A28 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 12 May 2020
France: Ex-president
investigated for
alleged sexual assault
PARIS (AP) — The pub- Le Monde and German
lic prosecutor's office in daily Suddeutsche Zei-
Paris said Monday that tung.
it has opened a prelimi- German broadcaster
nary investigation of a WDR, the news outlet for
sexual assault accusa- which the December
tion against 94-year-old 2018 interview was con-
former French President ducted, previously re-
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing. ported that it had inves-
The probe involves a Ger- tigated the misconduct
man journalist's allega- accusation.
tion that Giscard sexually Giscard's French lawyer
assaulted her during a said last week that the
2018 interview, the pros- former French leader "re-
ecutor's office said. tains no memory" of the
The journalist has assert- alleged incident. Giscard
ed that Giscard grabbed was president of France
her buttocks three times during 1974-1981.
nalist initially filed a legal African nations seek their own
and that she tried to News reports say the jour-
push his hand away, ac-
cording to reports by complaint with Paris pros-
French daily newspaper ecutors in March.q
Maltese ambassador
resigns after comparing
Merkel to Hitler
VALLETTA, Malta (AP) — ambassador to Finland
Malta's ambassador to for six years. The ministry
Finland has resigned af- said his resignation was
ter writing a Facebook accepted immediately.
post comparing Ger- In the Facebook post,
man Chancellor Angela since removed, Zammit
Merkel to Adolf Hitler and Tabona wrote: "75 years
saying her aim was "to ago we stopped hitler.
control Europe." Who will stop Angela
The Maltese Foreign Min- merkel? She has fulfilled
istry said Monday that Mi- hitlers dream! to control
chael Zammit Tabona's Europe."
comment "was not rep- Europe on Friday marked
resentative of the friend- the 75th anniversary of
ship and mutual respect the end of World War II in
between Malta and Ger- the continent after Nazi
many." Zammit Tabona Germany surrendered to
had been a non-resident Allied forces.q
Fire at nursing home
in Moscow suburb
kills 9, injures 9
MOSCOW (AP) — At least been hospitalized.
nine people have died in Officials said the fire had
a fire at a nursing home apparently been caused
on Moscow's outskirts, of- by a short circuit. They
ficials said Monday. said the nursing home
The authorities in Krasno- was registered as a pri- hima Gueye, a professor helping to develop tools Dr. Ahmed Ogwell, deputy
gorsk on Moscow's north- vate house and lacked
western edge said the fire alarms and other
fire at a private home for mandatory equipment.
the elderly erupted late Police have detained
Sunday. They said that its owner on charges
nine patients have died of breaching fire safety
and another nine have rules.q
In this photo taken Monday, April 13, 2020, medical students test a self-designed computer-
controlled ventilator prototype at the Chandaria Business and Incubation Centre of Kenyatta
University in Nairobi, Kenya.
Associated Press
solutions in virus crisis
By CARLEY PETESCH ported. Many hope that the coronavirus test, which
these efforts to develop can give results in 10 min-
Associated Press
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A ventilators, personal pro- utes, could be distributed
loud hiss and grunt come tective equipment, sanitiz- across Africa as early as
from a green bag pressing ers and quick-result anti- June. Once a prototype is
body tests will lead to more validated, the test kits will
air through a tube, as Sen-
egalese researchers work independent solutions for be made in the U.K. and at
to develop a prototype future health crises. a new facility in Senegal for
ventilator that could cost a Although the quality of infectious disease testing,
mere $160 each instead of some products won't meet DiaTropix, that was found-
tens of thousands of dollars. as high a standard as in ed by Institut Pasteur.
The team is using 3-D the U.S. or Europe, Gueye Workers in Dakar are using
printed parts as it works to said there is excitement laser cutters to make about
find a homegrown solu- that level can be reached 1,000 face shields per week
tion to a medical shortfall eventually, with enough for health care workers.
that has struck even the time and investment. They also are creating key
richest countries: how to In Ethiopia, biomedical en- chains with prevention mes-
have enough breathing gineer Bilisumma Anbesse sages such as "Stay Home."
machines to handle an is among those volunteers Alcohol-based hand sani-
avalanche of COVID-19 repairing and upgrading tizers are being produced
patients who need the de- old ventilators. While the in Zimbabwe on univer-
vices to help increase their country has tried to pro- sity and technical college
blood oxygen levels. cure more than 1,000 venti- campuses that have been
Complicating the task in lators abroad, progress has transformed into "COVID
Africa is the fact that the been thwarted by the high response factories." Higher
peak in coronavirus cases demand. "U.S. and Chinese Education Minister Amon
for the continent' is expect- companies that produce Murwira said the teams are
ed to come later than in Eu- mechanical ventilators also producing face masks,
rope and the United States, are saying they can't ac-
gowns and aprons.
well after dozens of other cept new orders until July. It's not known whether
countries have bought out The same is true with other these projects will be fin-
available supplies. medical items like PPE and ished before the virus hits
"Africans must find their gloves," Annbesse said, re- its peak in Africa, but ob-
own solutions to their prob- ferring to the personal pro- servers say the longer-term
lems. We must show our in- tective gear worn to mini- impact of such ingenuity
dependence. It's a big mo- mize exposure to health is substantial. "Necessity is
tivation for this," said Ibra- hazards. Africans also are the mother of invention,"
at the Polytechnic School for disease prevention and director of the Africa Cen-
of Thies in Senegal, on the surveillance. Institut Pas- ters for Disease Control and
12-member team develop- teur in Dakar is working on Prevention, told The Asso-
ing the prototype ventila- a rapid test for COVID-19 ciated Press. "What we're
tor. Their efforts are being in partnership with the Brit- seeing in Africa is going to
mirrored elsewhere across ish biotech company Mo- change the way medical
the continent, where medi- logic, which developed a supplies in particular are
cal supplies are usually im- rapid Ebola test. They hope manufactured." q