Italy doctors warn of 'bio bombs' from patients sent to care homes

AFP / Marco BERTORELLOTurin mayor Chiara Appendino (L) stands at attention as an elderly woman walks past during a minute of silence in cities across Italy to commemorate the victims of the virus

Italian doctors and unions have warned that a government policy to send patients discharged from hospital but still positive for coronavirus to care homes is like priming "biological bombs".

With over 28,000 people in hospital including more than 4,000 in intensive care, beds need to be freed up as soon as possible, and those unable to convalesce in isolation at home are being moved to care homes or requisitioned hotels.

The virus has already infiltrated assisted living facilities across the nation, in what is being dubbed the "silent massacre".

Hundreds of people in care homes are feared to have succumbed to the disease -- over 600 in the hard-hit Bergamo region alone -- though firm data are impossible to find, with many victims reportedly going untested, experts say.

They have voiced serious concerns over the safety of the 300,000 or so residents in Italy's 7,000 care homes.

AFP/File / MARCO BERTORELLOOver 28,000 people are in hospital in Italy including more than 4,000 in intensive care

"In a war like this, we can't expose ourselves to the danger of a recurrence of new outbreaks that risk turning care homes into 'biological bombs' that spread the virus," Raffaele Antonelli Incalzi, head of Italian geriatric society SIGG, told AFP.

"Widely using care home beds to ease pressure on hospitals... would put the elderly residents at risk, and they are the weakest link in this pandemic," he said.

- 'Who's checking?' -

Some 2,000 patients have already been transferred to care homes in Lombardy, the epicentre of the crisis, while the Marche region in central Italy and Sicily in the south have begun following suit, said SIGG.

AFP / Piero CruciattiA worker sprays disinfectant on Piazza Duomo in Milan

Figures for the numbers of patients involved nationally had not yet been compiled, it said.

Matteo Villa, research fellow at the Italian Institute for Political Studies (ISPI), told the foreign press association Monday that regional data showed a significant proportion of those discharged from hospital still had the virus.

The government has said strict rules apply to which facilities can be used to ensure no contamination takes place, from physical distancing, to training staff and equipping them with protective gear.

"Who's going to be checking the rules are enforced?" Marco Agazzi, president of the Bergamo branch of the national union of Italian doctors, told AFP.

"There are enormous difficulties in accessing protective gear, and if new recruits cannot be found it will mean taking away essential staff at already overstretched facilities," he said, describing the government's decision as "extremely perplexing".

AFP / ANDREAS SOLAROResidents of a neighbourhood in Rome leave food on a public bench as part of a citizens' initiative to help the poor during the country's lockdown

Roberto Bernabei, geriatrics professor at Catholic University in Rome, said regulations at care homes were a "grey zone, because they change from local health authority to local health authority, city to city, region to region".

- 'Homemade masks' -

Italy's national health institute said 86 percent of care homes surveyed reported difficulties getting hold of protective equipment, while 36 percent said they were struggling due to staff off sick.

Worried relatives have been bringing staff homemade masks and non-medical gowns in the hope it will stop them catching the virus and spreading it to loved ones, many of whom are in their 80s and 90s, SIGG said.

Pensioner trade unions have been calling for hotels, student housing or military barracks to be used instead.

A national lockdown imposed three weeks ago and affecting 60 million people appears to be working, with the ISS saying Tuesday the virus -- which has killed nearly 12,500 since emerging at the end of February -- has begun to plateau.

But Villa warned coronavirus recovery times meant the pressure on hospitals would only reduce slowly -- and could very well rise again when the punishing lockdown is eased, meaning care home beds would still be in demand.

"It's unrealistic to imagine there won't be any other moments of stress on the health system," he said.

1APR2020

 

   

Japan's Fujifilm starts Avigan trial to treat coronavirus

AFP/File / KAZUHIRO NOGITrials in China have suggested Avigan could play a role in shortening the recovery time for patients infected with coronavirus

Japan's Fujifilm has begun clinical trials to test the effectiveness of its anti-flu drug Avigan in treating patients with the new coronavirus, after reports of promising results in China.

Trials in China have suggested Avigan could play a role in shortening the recovery time for patients infected with coronavirus.

"The trial will be conducted on 100 patients until the end of June," a company spokesman told AFP on Wednesday.

"We will collect data, analyse them and file for approval after that," he added.

The drug will be administered for a maximum of 14 days to coronavirus patients between 20 and 74 years old with mild pneumonia, the spokesman said.

The study excludes pregnant women due to side effects shown in animal testing, he added.

The phase three trial comes after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Saturday that the government "will begin the necessary process to formally approve (Avigan) as a treatment against the new coronavirus."

China has already completed clinical trials on favipiravir, the main ingredient in Avigan, the country's ministry of science and technology said last month.

Two trials in the country found the drug shortened recovery time for patients, but Fujifilm was not involved in those programmes.

Avigan is currently approved for manufacture and sale in Japan as an antiviral drug for flu.

"It is expected that Avigan may potentially have an antiviral effect on the new coronavirus" given the way it works on the flu virus, Fujifilm said in a statement announcing the trial.

Researchers and companies around the world are racing to find a cure for the new coronavirus, with the focus on existing medicines such as anti-malaria and anti-HIV drugs.

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine to treat malaria have shown early promise against the COVID-19 illness in early studies in France and China.

But experts urge caution until bigger trials demonstrate their effectiveness.

Medical researchers around the world are also working to find a vaccine for the virus, which has so far killed more than 42,000 people globally.

U.S. offers to lift Venezuela sanctions for power-sharing deal
By Darryl Coote

Hundreds of Venezuelans take to the streets in Caracas on May 1, a day after members of the opposition clashed with government forces. File Photo by Miguel Gutiérrez/EPA-EFE

April 1 (UPI) -- The Trump administration has offered to lift sanctions from Venezuela if the opposition party and President Nicolas Maduro's socialist party create an interim transitional government with the aim of holding a free and fair presidential election in less than a year.

The State Department unveiled the 13-point plan Tuesday after more than a year of attempting to strong-arm Maduro from power with escalating sanctions imposed against him, his government and those the Trump administration accuses of keeping him at the country's helm.

Under the plan, Maduro would relinquish his hold as leader of the country to the interim government, which will consist of two people elected from Juan Guaido's opposition party, two people elected from Maduro's socialist party and a fifth member chosen by the four elected officials to act as interim president. That person, then, will be barred from running for president.

If the conditions of the framework are met -- specifically that a council of state is in place and is governing and foreign security forces have left the South American nation -- then the United States will suspend sanctions on the government and its oil sector. Those sanctions would then be revoked once elections are held and observers deem them to be free and fair.

Sanctions imposed against individual officials would be lifted once they step down. The plan also consists of establishing a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate "serious acts of violence" that have occurred since 1999, when former socialist President Victor Chavez began his rule, which ended in 2013 with his death.

"The basic outline is simple: We call for a transitional government that would govern for nine to 12 months and hold free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections," U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela Elliott Abrams told reporters Tuesday. "The United States will recognize the result of a free and fair election no matter which party wins."

Venezuela flat out rejected the framework late Tuesday, describing it as unconstitutional and in disregard of "the democratic will expressed by the Venezuelan people at the polls."

RELATED Trump administration demands Venezuela release Citgo 6 amid pandemic

"The U.S. pseudo-proposal confirms that the officials of that country completely ignore Venezuela's legal framework and how its institutions work," the Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The Trump administration began its maximum pressure campaign against the Maduro regime after his 2018 election was deemed illegitimate, backing instead opposition leader Guaido who appointed himself interim president. Since then, more than 55 mostly Western countries have supported Guaido's claim to the interim presidency.

Abrams said the framework proposal follows suggestions made by Guaido and his team last year and which he repeated over the weekend.

RELATED U.S. Treasury blacklists Rosneft subsidiary over Venezuela

What has changed since the proposal was first floated is that the regime is worse off, he said, adding the cost of its main export, oil, has not only dropped but the country is producing nearly half as many barrels at under 500,000 a day.

"The income the regime is getting from the one thing it has to sell, which is oil, has dropped precipitously," he said. "So, we think there's a lot more pressure on the regime."

In a statement, Guaido said it is not only the United States but other nations that support this framework.

"The correct steps are being taken to save Venezuela," he said, calling on Maduro to "assume his responsibility and accept the offer made by the international community."

The State Department's offer comes on the heels of the Justice Department charging Maduro and members of his cadre with drug trafficking, which the embattled leader rejected out of hand.

Venezuela's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said the framework offer and the charges are evidence the United States has lost direction with its foreign policy toward the South American country.

"The Trump administration's actions during recent days against Venezuela cannot be labeled in any other way: They are miserable," the Foreign Ministry said.

When asked if the indictments will force Maduro to cling ever more tightly to power, Abrams responded that the indictments are not a matter of policy as sanctions are but the plan was built less to address Maduro and more to appeal to the Venezuelan public.

"By leaving power, Maduro loses a great dal," Abrams said. "It's obvious that Maduro is going to resist any plan that calls for him to leave power, but the framework that we've proposed, we think, protects the legitimate rights of the Chavista party to contest elections and to be treated absolutely fairly in a transitional government."
In Venezuela shift, US offers sanctions relief for transitional government

AFP/File / Federico ParraVenezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido addresses supporters during a March 10, 2020 demonstration in Caracas

The United States on Tuesday offered a path for Venezuela's leftist leadership to remove sanctions in the face of a mounting humanitarian crisis by accepting a transitional government that excludes US ally Juan Guaido.

The tactical shift came after more than a year of faltering US-led efforts to oust President Nicolas Maduro and as fears grow that the coronavirus pandemic will spread rapidly both inside and from poverty-stricken Venezuela.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Guaido as well as Maduro should step aside for a transitional government comprising members of both their parties that will arrange elections in six to 12 months.

If fully implemented, the United States and European Union would lift sanctions, including sweeping US restrictions on Venezuela's key export of oil, the State Department said.

The IMF and other international lenders would be invited to plan economic relief for Venezuela, from which millions have fled as they face dire shortages of food and other necessities.

The plan also calls for the departure of foreign forces from Venezuela, a reference to the regime's support from Russia and Cuba.

"We believe this framework protects the interests and equities of all Venezuelan people who desperately seek a resolution to their dire political, economic and humanitarian crisis, and who know Venezuelans can have something better," Pompeo said, urging all sides to consider it "carefully and seriously."

Maduro has repeatedly ruled out ceding power and his government quickly rejected the framework, which is similar to a proposal put forward last year by Guaido in failed Norwegian-brokered talks.

"Venezuela is a free, sovereign, independent and democratic nation that does not and shall never accept instructions from any foreign government," Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza said.

Elliott Abrams, the US pointman on Venezuela, downplayed the reaction as predictable but said Washington hoped to jumpstart private talks within the regime and the military, which has remained loyal to Maduro.

- Still trying to oust Maduro -

AFP/File / Yuri CORTEZ, NICHOLAS KAMMUS Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (right) says that Washington still wants to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (left)

The United States has not shifted its goals, with Pompeo renewing support for Guaido -- a 36-year-old engineer who has been recognized as interim president by some 60 countries since January 2019.

And while the framework says that any Venezuelan can run for president in future elections, Pompeo reiterated that the United States wanted Maduro out.

"We've made clear all along that Nicolas Maduro will never again govern Venezuela," Pompeo told reporters.

Abrams later said that, while the United States would accept any results of a free election, it did not believe Maduro could win.

"There is no possible way that Nicolas Maduro remains in power if Venezuelans get to choose their own fate and get to elect their own leaders," he said.

Asked if Guaido could run, Pompeo said: "Absolutely yes."

"I think he's the most popular politician in Venezuela. I think if there were an election held today, he could do incredibly well," Pompeo said.

"But more importantly we continue to support him. When we put together this pathway to democracy, we worked closely with him."

- Guaido summoned -

AFP/File / Federico ParraA supporter of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido shoots back a tear gas canister shot by security forces during clashes on March 10, 2020

Guaido welcomed Pompeo's initiative, writing on Twitter: "This is the time to rise; we are taking the right steps to save Venezuela."

Hours earlier, Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab said on state television that Guaido had been summoned to appear before prosecutors in an investigation into the seizure of weapons in neighboring Colombia.

Saab alleged that the arms were to be smuggled into Venezuela. Colombia last week said it discovered a weapons cache linked to a retired Venezuelan general, Cliver Alcala -- who last week surrendered to US authorities on drug-trafficking charges.

Alcala on Tuesday pleaded not guilty before a federal court in New York.

He was once close to late president Hugo Chavez, Maduro's predecessor and ideological inspiration. But Saab charged that Alcala was taking orders from Guaido.

Opposition supporters say the Venezuelan judiciary regularly trumps up charges for political reasons, although Guaido has been allowed to operate freely, even after he flew to Washington earlier this year to meet President Donald Trump.

The United States last week also filed drug-trafficking charges against Maduro, putting a $15 million bounty on his head.

Abrams said that the indictment, as well as any sanctions against Maduro not directly related to his holding of power, would remain in place even if he accepts a transitional government.

burs-sct/dw

#FRACKQUAKE

Magnitude-6.5 earthquake shakes Idaho; no reports of damage

By Daniel Uria

More on the M 6.5 earthquake - 72km W of Challis, Idaho that just occurred here: https://t.co/Wquf6zjw1L Please let us know what you felt here: https://t.co/mXSyJ1nPuS pic.twitter.com/Mvx09rXimg— USGS (@USGS) April 1, 2020

March 31 (UPI) -- A magnitude-6.5 earthquake struck near Boise, Idaho, on Tuesday night, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The quake hit about 45 miles west of Challis, Idaho, at about 5:52 p.m., at a depth of 6.2 miles, the USGS said. Challis is about 120 miles northeast of Boise in central Idaho.

The agency said shaking was "very strong," and added that it received about 16,000 reports from people who felt it.

The USGS said it's likely to have a low impact and the Boise Police Department tweeted that there were no immediate reports of damage.

There is a 4 percent chance of one or more aftershocks larger than magnitude-6.5 throughout the next week, the USGS forecast.

"It is likely there will be smaller earthquakes over the next week, as well, with 4 to 790 magnitude-3 or higher aftershocks," the agency said. "Magnitude-3 and above are large enough to be felt near the epicenter. Then number of aftershocks will drop off over time, but a large aftershock can increase the numbers again, temporarily."

A earthquake near Salt Lake City last month, about 300 miles to the southeast, was followed by dozens of aftershocks.

Bechtel awarded $1.2B to destroy mustard weapons at Pueblo plant
By Christen McCurdy

This 2015 photo shows a worker at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant. This week Bechtel received a $1.2 contract modification to continue destroying mustard munitions at the plant. Photo by Bethani Crouch/U.S. Army

April 1 (UPI) -- Bechtel National received a $1.2 billion contract extension this week to destroy surplus chemical weapons stored at the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado.

The deal funds the construction of three new buildings -- called static detonation chambers -- to destroy munitions that could not be destroyed by automated equipment in Pueblo, according to Bechtel.

The Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plant in Pueblo began pilot operations in 2016 and has destroyed more than 1,300 tons of mustard weapons. According to Bechtel, that's more than half of the stockpile in Colorado.

By the time the project is complete, Bechtel estimates staff will have destroyed more than 2,600 tons of mustard gas in three formats -- 155mm projectiles, 105 mm projectiles and 4.2-inch mortar rounds -- before ultimately closing the plant.

According to materials published by the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant, staff at the plant use three processes to destroy chemical weapons: neutralization followed by biotreatment; explosive destruction; and static detonation.

"The mission of this plant, our people, and our customer has international significance: to help rid the U.S. of chemical weapons," Barbara Rusinko, president of Bechtel's Nuclear, Security and Environmental global business unit, said in a press release. "The team overcame the challenge posed by some munitions and is now simultaneously operating the main plant and building the new destruction facilities."

Michael S. Abaie, program executive officer for the Army's Program Executive Office for Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives, said the project puts his office in a "good position" to finish destroying the weapons stockpile by December 2023.

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Wimbledon cancelled for first time since WWII

AELTC/AFP/File / Thomas LOVELOCK

Novak Djokovic and Simona Halep were Wimbledon singles champions in 2019

Roger Federer and Serena Williams were among the tennis stars left devastated on Wednesday as Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II due to the coronavirus.

The cancellation of the oldest Grand Slam tournament at London's All England Club leaves the season in disarray, with no tennis set to be played until mid-July.

"Devastated," tweeted eight-time champion Federer, while Serena, who has won the tournament seven times, said she was shocked by the momentous decision.

Wimbledon was due to run for two weeks from June 29, with Novak Djokovic and Simona Halep set to defend their singles titles.

But tournament chiefs bowed to the inevitable on Wednesday, saying in a statement that they had made the decision with "great regret".

US tennis chiefs responded by saying the US Open, due to finish a week before the controversially rearranged French Open, was still due to take place as planned.

All England Club chairman Ian Hewitt said the decision to cancel Wimbledon had not been taken lightly.

"It has weighed heavily on our minds that the staging of The Championships has only been interrupted previously by world wars," he said.

AFP/File / Ben STANSALLSerena Williams is stuck on 23 Grand Slams

"But, following thorough and extensive consideration of all scenarios, we believe that it is a measure of this global crisis that it is ultimately the right decision to cancel this year's Championships."

Halep tweeted her disappointment.

"So sad to hear @Wimbledon won't take place this year," she said.

"Last year's final will forever be one of the happiest days of my life! But we are going through something bigger than tennis and Wimbledon will be back! And it means I have even longer to look forward to defending my title."

Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray added: "Very sad that Wimbledon has been cancelled this year but with all that is going on in the world right now, everyone's health is definitely the most important thing!"

The decision to cancel Wimbledon was widely expected, with the world struggling to contain the spread of COVID-19, which has claimed more than 43,000 lives and infected more than 860,000 people, according to an AFP tally.

- 'I'm going to miss it' -

Organisers had earlier ruled out playing the event behind closed doors while postponing it would also have created its own problems, with shorter days later in the English summer.

The ATP and WTA have also cancelled the grass-court swing in the build-up to the tournament, meaning the tennis season will not now restart until July 13 at the earliest.

The US Tennis Association said it was sticking to its August 31 to September 13 dates for the US Open in New York.

"At this time the USTA still plans to host the US Open as scheduled, and we continue to hone plans to stage the tournament," it said in a statement.

"The USTA is carefully monitoring the rapidly changing environment surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, and is preparing for all contingencies."

American legend Billie-Jean King, a six-time Wimbledon women's singles champion, said cancelling the tournament was the only option in the circumstances.

"I fully understand and support the decision of the committee and it is vital we keep our focus on those most impacted by this pandemic," she said.

"I have been fortunate to go to Wimbledon every year since 1961 and I am certainly going to miss it this year."

The cancellation could mean multiple champions Federer, Serena Williams and Venus Williams have played at the All England Club for the final time.

POOL/AFP/File / Adrian DENNISHas eight-time champion

 Roger Federer played for the last time at Wimbledon?

Federer and Serena will be nearly 40 by the time of the 2021 championships and Venus will be 41.

Serena, beaten in last year's final by Halep, is stuck on 23 Grand Slam singles titles -- agonisingly one away from equalling Margaret Court's record.

Tennis has endured a torrid time in recent weeks with the entire European claycourt season wiped out.

The French Tennis Federation provoked widespread anger with its unilateral decision to move the French Open from its original May 24 start date to begin on September 20 - one week after the conclusion of the US Open in New York.

1APR2020

 Auto industry races to make ventilators during virus crisis

GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File / STEPHANIE KEITHMechanical ventilators needed to treat those suffering from respiratory distress due to COVID-19 are in short supply

The automotive industry is offering its expertise and manpower to the hospital sector as it gears up to build mechanical ventilators during the coronavirus pandemic, an initiative that is being met with some scepticism.

American auto manufacturers General Motors and Ford, French car companies PSA and Renault, Germany's Volkswagen group and Formula 1 engineers have joined the ranks in response to a massive global shortage of the vital piece of medical equipment.

As hospitals around the world face a surge of patients with breathing difficulties from COVID-19, the scarcity of ventilators has forced doctors to make life-or-death decisions.

Repurposing car factories for emergency production has drawn comparisons to World War II, when they were used to build tanks and fighter planes.

But some experts say that in this situation, building critical care ventilators will require different techniques and procedures from what a car factory normally sees.

US President Donald Trump used wartime economy analogies to justify his appeal to the automobile industry as the country grapples with a mounting number of coronavirus cases. He ultimately used a 1950s law concerning defence production to force one of GM's plants to make ventilators.

In France, meanwhile, a consortium of industrial companies has been created -- including PSA and automotive equipment supplier Valeo -- to manufacture "10,000 ventilators by mid-May", President Emmanuel Macron announced Tuesday.

SEAT/AFP/File / HandoutA mechanical ventilator being developed by Spanish automobile manufacturer SEAT at the company's Martorell factory using a windscreen wiper motor

In Spain, Volkswagen's Seat brand has switched to producing ventilators at its Martorell plant near Barcelona.

The proposed model, which uses the adapted motor of a windscreen wiper, is already undergoing testing with the hopes of gaining formal approval from health authorities, Seat said in a statement.

For its part, Mercedes has asked its Formula 1 team, which was idle due to postponed or cancelled Grand Prix races, to get to work.

The six-time world champion team built a less-invasive respiratory device in order to reserve ventilators -- which require breathing tubes and sedation -- for the most severely affected patients.

The team says it could manufacture some 1,000 units a day with the help of six other UK-based F1 teams which have committed to help build the devices.

A version of the device -- which increases air and oxygen flow into the lungs and is often used to treat sleep apnea -- has already been used in hospitals in Italy and China to help COVID-19 patients.

The "Project Pitlane" mission takes advantage of "the core skills of the F1 industry: rapid design, prototype manufacture, test and skilled assembly," Formula 1 said in a statement.

- Dependent on suppliers -

Some look sceptically on the car industry's entry into the world of medical equipment, however.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a non-profit organisation founded after the creation of the atomic bomb and which is known for its symbolic "Doomsday Clock", said in a recent article that car manufacturers are not best placed for assembling medical equipment.

"Ventilators might resemble the pumps and air conditioners used in automobiles, but few automakers build their own -- they buy them from specialised producers," the group pointed out.

University College London (UCL)/AFP/File / James TyeMechanical engineers, doctors and the Mercedes Formula 1 team in conjunction with University College London have adapted a device used to help people who have trouble breathing while sleeping to help COVID-19 patients

While carmakers have under-utilised production capacity at the moment, they are still dependent on suppliers who are often overseas, at a moment when supply chains have nearly ground to a halt, it said in its report.

"Facile images of Ford assembly lines building World War II bombers can only get us so far in solving the ventilator problems of today," the group said.

But car manufacturers say they are up to the task.

Renault has put its "technocentre" outside of Paris, its largest research and development centre in France, to work on developing a prototype using state-of-the-art equipment such as 3D printers

In the world race to get ahead of the coronavirus, time is of the essence.

For Formula 1 and University College London engineers, "it took fewer than 100 hours from the initial meeting to production of the first device," the team said.

This may be a typical lead time in motor racing, but not necessarily in other industries

A LIGHT PAINTING TRIBUTE FOR HEALTH WORKERS VIDEO

The gun in the toilet
Mohamad Ali Harissi  AFP Wednesday 1 April 2020

Baghdad -- When the coronavirus started spreading in neighboring Iran in February, Iraqis immediately turned to sarcasm. One comment stood out: what could it possibly do to us? We have seen it all.

It was my first time back in Baghdad since being posted there in 2014. The city was so different. Yet it hadn’t changed at all.

Aerial view of Baghdad, February 2020. (AFP / Mohamad Ali Harissi)

Despite the relatively stable security situation, casually interrupted by protest clashes and rockets targeting bases hosting US soldiers, the one feeling that was still common amongst its citizens was frustration.

I had been posted to Baghdad between 2011 and 2014, when the city was ruled by car bombs and was besieged by death.

Morgues were visited on a daily basis, where Iraqi families would struggle to identify their loved ones randomly killed in ice cream shops, restaurants, schools, theaters... Everyone had lost someone.
 

Baghdad, February 2020. (AFP/ Mohamad Ali Harissi)

In June 2014, weeks before I left the city, the Islamic State group took over Mosul, driving the country into an even darker tunnel. But defeating IS four years later opened a window of hope.

When I returned this February on an assignment, Baghdad looked as if it was finally catching a breath after a marathon of turbulences that lasted for four decades, since Saddam Hussein came to power.

Baghdad, February 2020. (AFP / Mohamad Ali Harissi)

Just before the novel coronavirus started forcing people to stay at home, fancy cars were roaming the Tigris corniche at night, mesmerizing old houses were being renovated, families peacefully sharing meals at newly opened restaurants, and couples holding hands while walking the streets of the vibrant al-Mansour area on Valentine’s Day.

Many social taboos have been broken over a short period of time. 32-year-old Ahmad told me that the relative calm made people realize that there is more to life than fighting death everyday. “Dignity”, he said.

In an oil rich country where 65% of the population is under 25, young men and women were aspiring to enjoy the same lifestyle of neighboring countries. “I want a country” became the slogan of the protests that broke out in October.

Normality, a cafe in Baghdad, February, 2020. (AFP / Mohamad Ali Harissi)

But corruption remains one of the main challenges. It became so rooted after the US-led 2003 invasion that nothing could be achieved without a bribe. Even ministries were won by the highest bidder.

Sectarianism, lack of basic services, militias controlling businesses, absence of medical care that forced families to travel abroad for treatment, all pushed Iraqis to the edge of depression and desperation.

Many Baghdad residents wanted to leave in 2014, and many still want to escape the endless frustration, deepened recently by the deaths caused by the coronavirus that by end of March had claimed more than 40 victims in their country and more than 2,600 in neighboring Iran.

Protesting in Baghdad, February 2020. (AFP / Mohamad Ali Harissi)

In the historical al-Mutanabi street in central Baghdad, Ali, born in the 1940s, made his living out of colorful suits, flowery ties, and a young photo of himself attached to a motorcycle decorated with plastic flowers.

Standing in the shadow of a statue for the famous Arab poet l-Mutanabi, Ali told me that Baghdad was, and should be again, just like him. “Clean and cheerful”, he said.

Getting better with age -- Ali is "clean and cheerful." Baghdad, 

February, 2020. (AFP / Mohamad Ali Harissi)

But the city looked years away from that.

On my first night back in February, I went out to have dinner in a charming restaurant.

A man was impatiently waiting for his date, couples and friends loudly chatting and laughing, and a family had gathered around a table celebrating with a yellow cake what looked like the birthday of their little son.

I felt a comfort that I had never experienced when I was based there.

But the moment lasted only until I went to the toilet.

Over a metal garbage can, in the corner of the small space, against the background of the sky blue/pink roses wallpaper, someone had left his black gun.

It was a simple reminder that I was still in the same Baghdad I left six years ago.

The gun in the toilet. Restroom in a Baghdad restaurant, 

February, 2020. (AFP / Mohamad Ali Harissi)


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Mohamad Ali Harissi

Smartphone videos produce highly realistic 3-D face reconstructions

by Byron Spice, Carnegie Mellon University

In a 3-D face reconstruction process developed at Carnegie Mellon University, smartphone video of a person, left, is analyzed to produce an imperfect model of the face, middle. Deep learning is then combined with conventional computer vision techniques to complete the reconstruction, right. Credit: Carnegie Mellon University

Normally, it takes pricey equipment and expertise to create an accurate 3-D reconstruction of someone's face that's realistic and doesn't look creepy. Now, Carnegie Mellon University researchers have pulled off the feat using video recorded on an ordinary smartphone.

Using a smartphone to shoot a continuous video of the front and sides of the face generates a dense cloud of data. A two-step process developed by CMU's Robotics Institute uses that data, with some help from deep learning algorithms, to build a digital reconstruction of the face. The team's experiments show that their method can achieve sub-millimeter accuracy, outperforming other camera-based processes.

A digital face might be used to build an avatar for gaming or for virtual or augmented reality, and could also be used in animation, biometric identification and even medical procedures. An accurate 3-D rendering of the face might also be useful in building customized surgical masks or respirators.

"Building a 3-D reconstruction of the face has been an open problem in computer vision and graphics because people are very sensitive to the look of facial features," said Simon Lucey, an associate research professor in the Robotics Institute. "Even slight anomalies in the reconstructions can make the end result look unrealistic."

Laser scanners, structured light and multicamera studio setups can produce highly accurate scans of the face, but these specialized sensors are prohibitively expensive for most applications. CMU's newly developed method, however, requires only a smartphone.

The method, which Lucey developed with master's students Shubham Agrawal and Anuj Pahuja, was presented in early March at the IEEE Winter Conference on Applications of Computer Vision (WACV) in Snowmass, Colorado. It begins with shooting 15-20 seconds of video. In this case, the researchers used an iPhone X in the slow-motion setting.

VIDEO Normally, it takes pricey equipment and expertise to create an accurate 3D reconstruction of someone's face. Now, Carnegie Mellon University researchers have pulled off the feat using video recorded on an ordinary smartphone. A two-step process developed by CMU's Robotics Institute harvests data from the video, with some help from deep learning algorithms, to build a digital reconstruction of the face. Credit: Carnegie Mellon University

"The high frame rate of slow motion is one of the key things for our method because it generates a dense point cloud," Lucey said.

The researchers then employ a commonly used technique called visual simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM). Visual SLAM triangulates points on a surface to calculate its shape, while at the same time using that information to determine the position of the camera. This creates an initial geometry of the face, but missing data leave gaps in the model.

In the second step of this process, the researchers work to fill in those gaps, first by using deep learning algorithms. Deep learning is used in a limited way, however: it identifies the person's profile and landmarks such as ears, eyes and nose. Classical computer vision techniques are then used to fill in the gaps.

"Deep learning is a powerful tool that we use every day," Lucey said. "But deep learning has a tendency to memorize solutions," which works against efforts to include distinguishing details of the face. "If you use these algorithms just to find the landmarks, you can use classical methods to fill in the gaps much more easily."

The method isn't necessarily quick; it took 30-40 minutes of processing time. But the entire process can be performed on a smartphone.

In addition to face reconstructions, the CMU team's methods might also be employed to capture the geometry of almost any object, Lucey said. Digital reconstructions of those objects can then be incorporated into animations or perhaps transmitted across the internet to sites where the objects could be duplicated with 3-D printer

Virtual reality becomes more real

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Provided by Carnegie Mellon University