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Russia to face consequences if Navalny dies
- Train accident north of Cairo has killed at least 11 people, say authorities
- Eager Londoners queue up to be tested in race to find Covid variants
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Gunmen kill eight members of a family in Afghanistan
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Global COVID-19 Deaths Top 3 Million
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South Africa's Table Mountain ravaged by fire
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Germany to offer refuge to Afghans who helped military
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Japan's Osaka to ask govt to declare state of emergency - governor
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After ‘Green Rush,’ Canada’s Legal Pot Suppliers Are Stumbling
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Minneapolis braces for unrest as Derek Chauvin trial enters final phase
Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, eeff, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame, jck and Rise above the swamp. . Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man, wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw.
Since 2007 the OND has been a regular community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time.
Please feel free to share your articles and stories in the comments and consider this an open thread.
BBC
Russia will face 'consequences' if Navalny dies - US
The US has warned Russia there will be "consequences" if the opposition activist Alexei Navalny dies in jail.
The UK, France, Germany and the European Union have also expressed their concern over his treatment.
Navalny's doctors say he "will die within the next few days" if not given urgent medical attention for acute back pain and leg numbness.
Russia's ambassador to the UK has said that Navalny is attention seeking and "will not be allowed to die in prison".
A prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin, Navalny, 44, was jailed in February for old embezzlement charges, which he claims are politically motivated.
He started a hunger strike on 31 March in protest at not being able to see his own medical team, and his doctors say recent blood test results indicate he could suffer kidney failure and go into cardiac arrest at any moment.
The Guardian
Train accident north of Cairo has killed at least 11 people, say authorities
A passenger train derailed north of Cairo, killing at least 11 people, Egyptian authorities have said, in the latest in a string of rail accidents to hit the country in recent years.
Four train wagons ran off the railway track by the city of Banha in Qalyubia province, just outside Cairo, the railway authority said in a statement on Sunday. Videos on social media showed wagons overturned and passengers escaping to safety along the railway.
The train was travelling to the Nile delta city of Mansoura from the Egyptian capital.
The health ministry said that at least 98 people were injured, with most of them suffering from broken bones, cuts and bruises. At least 60 ambulances were sent to the scene and the injured were taken to nearby hospitals.
The Guardian
Eager Londoners queue up to be tested in race to find Covid variants
The steady stream of people at the two surge testing units in Finchley, north London, last week suggests that, more than a year after the pandemic hit, the public spirit to do something about Covid is still strong.
The effectiveness of surge testing is a more open question, however. The rapid testing of 5,000 households last week was an attempt to isolate the South African variant and others of concern. Yet although standard PCR tests come back within 24 hours, genomic sequencing tests to identify a Covid variant take 14 days – by which time the period of infectiousness is usually over.
It was clear from talking to people in north London that public awareness of the distinction between regular testing and surge testing was not always obvious, despite the strong desire to help.
Al Jazeera
Gunmen kill eight members of a family in Afghanistan (Just like us)
Eight members of a family were killed when unknown attackers opened fire on them at a mosque in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province.
The shooting happened on Saturday night in the city of Jalalabad. According to Nangarhar Governor Ziaulhaq Amarkhil, the killings happened apparently over a land dispute.
Five brothers and three of their male cousins were killed.
“The shooting happened at the time of the tarawih [extra prayers in the evening during Ramadan]. This was a targeted attack and initial information shows a land dispute was the reason,” Amarkhil told Al Jazeera.
Clashes over land disputes are common across Afghanistan. The so-called blood feuds can last for decades, passing down through generations in a cycle of violence.
NPR
Global COVID-19 Deaths Top 3 Million
Global deaths from COVID-19 has surpassed 3 million, according to the latest datafrom John Hopkins University.
Leading in those deaths are the United States, with more than 566,000, and Brazil, with more than 368,000. They are followed by Mexico, India and the United Kingdom.
The global death toll reached 1 million in September 2020 and 2 million in January.
The grim milestone comes after health officials in the U.S. paused rollout of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine after six women experienced rare but severe blood clots a week or two after receiving it.
Overall, more than 129 million people in the U.S. have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, including 7.8 million doses of the J&J vaccine. More than 82 million Americans — nearly 25% of the population — have been fully vaccinated.
Reuters
Japan's Osaka to ask govt to declare state of emergency - governor
Osaka will ask the Japanese government to declare a state of emergency in an effort to reverse the rise in coronavirus cases, the governor of the country's third-most populous prefecture said on Monday.
Osaka and several other prefectures have been in a "quasi-emergency" state for two weeks, with targeted measures aimed at controlling the spread of COVID-19.
"The fruits of these measures should be appearing now, but when we look at the number of infections from yesterday, it was 1,220 cases, which is a record high," Hirofumi Yoshimura told reporters in comments carried online.
"Medical services are also in a dire state, and we've decided that we need a state of emergency."
Deutsche Welle
South Africa's Table Mountain ravaged by fire
An "out of control" fire broke out inside Cape Town's Table Mountain National Park on Sunday, prompting the speedy evacuation of one of South Africa's most famous landmarks.
Hikers were told to leave the area as the blaze moved towards the University of Cape Town campus from which students have also been evacuated.
South Africa's National Parks said in a statement that more than 120 firefighters and four helicopters had been sent to the scene.
The statement said that the Rhodes Memorial Restaurant had "unfortunately been burnt down."
"The fire created its own wind that further increased the rate of spread. The excessive amount of smoke and related updrafts made it impossible for the aerial support to slow the rate of spread," officials said.
Local people uploaded pictures and videos of the fire to social media. DW has been unable to independently verify the authenticity of the content.
Deutsche Welle
Germany to offer refuge to Afghans who helped military Hope we do the same.
There are currently some 300 people employed by the German armed forces in Afghanistan, according to DPA
German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer wants the country to take in Afghan nationals who helped the German military during the war in Afghanistan, she told the German news agency DPA in remarks published Sunday.
Her comments come as NATO and the United States announced the withdrawal of their troops from Afghanistan this year, prompting fears that some Afghans could now be in danger after helping foreign forces.
German troops are deployed to the country as part of NATO's Resolute Support mission to train the Afghan National Defence forces.
A procedure for admitting local Afghan staff who need refuge already exists, although there are a number of disputed cases.
According to the Defense Ministry, 781 people have been approved for residency since 2010
New York Times
After ‘Green Rush,’ Canada’s Legal Pot Suppliers Are Stumbling
EXETER, Ontario — The mayor of the largely rural community of South Huron, Ontario, was looking forward to an employment boom when a marijuana producer used its soaring stock value to buy an enormous greenhouse on the edge of the municipality’s largest town.
The purchase three years ago, in Exeter, promised to make his sprawling community a major hub for what seemed like Canada’s next big growth industry: legal pot and the high-paying jobs it would bring.
But before any of the 200 or so anticipated jobs in the greenhouse were filled — or before a single marijuana seed was even sown there — it became apparent that Canada was already growing far more marijuana than the market wanted.
After sitting idle for two years, the one-million-square-foot greenhouse was sold last year for about one-third of its original purchase price of 26 million Canadian dollars, or $20.75 million. It’s too bad. So it may well revert to vegetables again.”
Washington Post
Minneapolis braces for unrest as Derek Chauvin trial enters final phase
Closing arguments are scheduled for Monday in the landmark case, and officials, business owners and residents across the city are afraid Minneapolis could see a repeat of the civil unrest that erupted after Floyd’s death last May.
The killing of Wright, an unarmed Black man who was shot by a police officer during a traffic stop April 11, has not only increased anxiety over the potential for violent protests and looting, but it has also created confusion over who is in charge of efforts to keep the city safe. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D), the city police chief and the county sheriff all share in the role, but they appear to hold different views on how best to respond.
“It just feels like it’s more politically driven than productively saying, ‘What can we do to prevent people from getting harmed here?’ ” said Lonnie McQuirter, 35, owner of 36 Lyn Refuel Station in Minneapolis, who, like many residents, is torn between needing police to protect his business and being concerned that an overly aggressive response will do more harm.