Australian police seize 'black box' from Ruby Princess cruise ship amid coronavirus homicide investigation - Fox News

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Police in Australia have seized the “black box” of the Ruby Princess cruise ship, which is currently at the center of a homicide investigation following a deadly outbreak of coronavirus linked to the ship.

COSTA CRUISE PASSENGER FILES LAWSUIT, CLAIMS OPERATOR KNEW SHIP WAS 'TICKING CORONAVIRUS TIME BOMB'

On Thursday, New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said investigators spoke with the ship’s captain, who was “extremely helpful,” and also gathered the liner’s electronic logs.

“Ships have a black box very similar to that of international planes, and that and other evidence has been seized for further investigation,” Fuller said during a televised press briefing on Thursday, per Reuters.

The Ruby Princess cruise ship, seen here docked at Port Kembia in New South Wales on April 6, is at the center of a criminal investigation by New South Wales police. (Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

On April 4, Fuller confirmed a criminal probe into the disembarkation of the Ruby Princess, which is operated by Princess Cruises, itself a subsidiary of the Carnival Corporation. At the time, the ship was linked to at least 662 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 11 deaths. By Thursday, the death toll had risen to 15, Reuters reports.

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In the weeks that followed the ship’s docking, controversy had ignited over the disembarkation of nearly 2,700 passengers on March 19. New South Wales Health officials said at the time that about a dozen passengers had felt unwell and been tested for COVID-19 — though other passengers were not alerted of this update, ultimately departing the ship without screening, and then traveling home.

“The key question that remains unanswered… was Carnival, or crew, transparent in contextualizing the true patient/crew health conditions relevant to COVID-19?” he stated during the April 4 press briefing.

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“There is clear evidence that [COVID-19] has been brought off that ship,” Fuller said during the briefing, while also confirming that the investigation would seek to find out if Carnival had downplayed the symptoms of passengers and crew prior to docking.

“The only way I can get to the bottom of whether our national bio-security laws and our state laws have been broken is through a criminal investigation,” he later added.

A representative for Carnival has said it would “vigorously respond” to the probe in a statement shared with Fox News earlier this week.

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Around 1,000 crew members remained on the ship as of Thursday, Reuters reported.

Fox News' Janine Puhak contributed to this report.

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2020-04-09 14:03:09Z
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Saudi Arabia Declares Cease-Fire in Yemen, Citing Fears of Coronavirus - The New York Times

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia on Wednesday announced that the kingdom and its allies would observe a unilateral cease-fire in the war in Yemen starting at noon on Thursday, a move that could pave the way for ending the brutal five-year-old conflict.

Saudi officials said the cease-fire sought to jump-start peace talks brokered by the United Nations and had been motivated by fears of the coronavirus spreading in Yemen, the poorest country in the Arab world, where the health care system has been ravaged by years of blockade and conflict.

The gesture is the first by any government entangled in an international armed conflict to halt hostilities at least in part because of the coronavirus pandemic, which has traumatized the world. The leader of the United Nations, Secretary General António Guterres, pleaded for a worldwide humanitarian cease-fire two weeks ago because of the pandemic.

While Yemen is one of the few countries in the world yet to have a confirmed case of Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, aid workers fear that an outbreak there would be devastating for the war-torn country. Saudi Arabia itself has struggled to stop the virus from spreading, including inside its own sprawling royal family.

The cease-fire, the Saudi officials said, would last for two weeks and include Saudi Arabia’s Arab allies and the internationally recognized Yemeni government, which was effectively toppled in 2014 when a rebel group aligned with Iran and known as the Houthis took over much of the country’s northwest and its capital, Sana.

Saudi Arabia and its allies have been fighting since March 2015 to push the Houthis back and restore the Yemeni government — with little success.

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The Houthis were not consulted before the cease-fire was announced, Saudi officials said, speaking on condition that they not be identified by name, and the kingdom reserved the right to respond if the Houthis fired missiles into Saudi territory.

But shortly before the Saudi announcement, a senior Houthi official, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, posted a detailed, eight-page plan to end the war on his Twitter account, raising questions about whether the warring parties were competing to appear more interested in peace than their enemies.

When asked why the Saudis would suddenly, after five years of war, propose a nationwide cease-fire, Elana DeLozier, a research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy who studies Yemen, attributed it to the pandemic.

“Coronavirus is the answer,” she said. “Coronavirus has freaked out everyone in Yemen.”

She called the Saudi announcement “the biggest concession and the biggest confidence-building measure that the Saudis have given since the beginning of the war.”

And the Saudis appeared to be using it as a way to gauge the Houthis’ willingness to negotiate.

“It really is a test case,” she said.

That meant that the cease-fire’s immediate success will largely depend on compliance by the Houthis, whose leaders did not immediately respond to the Saudi announcement.

Their forces have been making gains against Saudi-backed Yemeni forces in recent months, which may make them hesitant to give concessions. But they could see benefits to engaging in a peace process, if they feel that it recognizes the power they have gained during the war.

Saudi officials said the Yemeni government, most of whose officials live in Riyadh at the kingdom’s expense, had agreed to the cease-fire as well, but no Yemeni officials were on a telephone conference call with journalists to announce the cease-fire.

After the cease-fire was announced, Khalid bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s deputy defense minister, wrote on Twitter that the kingdom would give the United Nations $500 million for humanitarian work in Yemen and $25 million to fight the coronavirus.

Despite the cease-fire’s tenuousness, Martin Griffiths, the United Nations special envoy to Yemen, hailed the announcement in a statement, saying it should create a fertile environment for peace talks.

“The parties must now utilize this opportunity and cease immediately all hostilities with the utmost urgency, and make progress towards comprehensive and sustainable peace,” Mr. Griffiths said.

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the United Nations described Yemen as the world’s worst man-made humanitarian disaster. A large majority of the country’s 28 million people face hunger, disease and other deprivations.

Ben Hubbard reported from Beirut, and Saeed Al-Batati from Al Mukalla, Yemen.

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2020-04-09 13:23:55Z
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Boris Johnson's condition is 'improving' after third night in intensive care - CNN

Johnson was continuing to receive "standard oxygen treatment" and thanked health staff for their brilliant care, the spokesman said.

"(Johnson) had a good night and continues to improve," the spokesman added. "He's in good spirits."

Rishi Sunak, the UK's top finance minister, said at the daily Downing Street press briefing Wednesday that Johnson was "sitting up in bed and engaging positively with the clinical team."

Sunak added: "The news about the Prime Minister reminds us how indiscriminate this virus is."

The 55-year-old was taken to London's St. Thomas' Hospital on Sunday because he was displaying "persistent" symptoms ten days after testing positive for the virus.

On Monday, Johnson's condition worsened and he was taken to the ICU, but on Tuesday, Downing Street said he was in a stable condition.

He did not require mechanical or invasive ventilation and did not have pneumonia, said Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who is deputizing for the Prime Minister.

The UK government's emergency committee -- Cobra -- was meeting Thursday to discuss options to review the coronavirus restrictions, but officials have played down the possibility of the lockdown being lifted any time soon.

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2020-04-09 12:54:58Z
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UK leader Boris Johnson 'continues to improve' after a third night in intensive care - CNBC

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street on his way to Buckingham Palace after the general election in London, Britain, December 13, 2019.

Thomas Mukoya | Reuters

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson "continues to improve," his spokesman said Thursday, after spending a third night in intensive care with coronavirus.

Speaking to journalists, the spokesman also said Johnson had a good night and is "in good spirits." The prime minister, who is currently at at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, has been receiving "standard oxygen treatment," indicating that he is not on a ventilator. 

Culture Minister Oliver Dowden earlier Thursday commented on Johnson's condition, telling the BBC that Johnson is "stable, improving, sat up and engaged with medical staff," adding: "I think things are getting better for him."

Johnson's battle in hospital comes as the U.K. reported on Wednesday its largest daily rise in deaths so far — 938 fatalities — raising the overall death toll to 7,097 people.

The government's emergency committee are convening Thursday to discuss lockdown measures and to review scientific data around the spread of the coronavirus in the U.K. since restrictions on public life were introduced in late March.

Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, is currently deputizing for Johnson and will chair the meeting.

Almost all businesses remain closed, except for those deemed essential, and the public have been told to stay at home unless they need to buy food, fetch medicine or exercise once a day.

Johnson, 55, was moved to the intensive care unit at St. Thomas' Hospital on Monday evening after his coronavirus symptoms worsened.

He announced on March 27 that he had tested positive for COVID-19, but wasn't admitted to hospital until Sunday for "tests" due to persistent symptoms of the virus, including a cough and a fever.

Sunak said Wednesday that Johnson's infection showed COVID-19 was an "indiscriminate" disease that is impacting people across the U.K. He offered support for the prime minister, who he called his "friend," and said "my thoughts are with him and his family."

Johnson was the first world leader to contract the coronavirus and his admission to intensive care has shocked many. On Tuesday, he was sent best wishes from leaders in Europe, and President Donald Trump, who called him a "very good friend."

— CNBC's Ryan Browne contributed reporting to this story.

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2020-04-09 12:12:40Z
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Australian police raid cruise ship linked to 600 coronavirus cases, 15 deaths - Fox News

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SYDNEY-- Police wearing protective gear boarded a cruise ship to seize evidence and question crew members of the vessel linked to hundreds of coronavirus infections and 15 deaths across Australia.

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About 2,700 passengers disembarked from the ship on March 19 in Sydney and it has since become the largest source of coronavirus infections in Australia. More than 600 cases of COVID-19 and 15 deaths are linked the to the ship, the Ruby Princess.

New South Wales police, which boarded the ship Wednesday night at Port Kembla south of Sydney, said it’s expected to remain in port for 10 days with its 1,040 crew undergoing medical assessments. About 200 crew have shown symptoms of COVID-19, while 18 have tested positive for the virus that causes it. The workers remaining on the ship are from 50 countries.

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New South Wales police Commissioner Mick Fuller said Thursday that officers seized a black box “very similar to that of international planes” and other evidence. He said the captain had been extremely helpful.

“I can confirm there’s still over 1,000 crew members on the ship,” he said, adding that three-quarters of them want to remain on the ship. “They feel safe on the ship and I think that’s a good outcome.”

On Thursday, Australia recorded its lowest increase in coronavirus cases in more than three weeks.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said there were 96 new cases, the first time there have been fewer than 100 a day since March 17. The peak was on March 28, when 457 cases were recorded. There have been a total of just over 6,000 and 51 deaths in Australia from the virus.

Seeking to limit the impact on the economy, lawmakers passed a wage subsidy program late Wednesday worth $81 billion.

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2020-04-09 10:16:43Z
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Pope says coronavirus could be ‘nature’s response’ to climate change - Fox News

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Pope Francis likened the coronavirus pandemic to recent fires and floods as one of “nature’s responses” to the world’s ambivalence to climate change.

“There is an expression in Spanish: ‘God always forgives, we forgive sometimes, but nature never forgives,'” the pope said in an interview published Wednesday in The Tablet, a United Kingdom-based Catholic weekly.

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Pope Francis said the world had yet to respond to recent “partial catastrophes” related to the climate.<br data-cke-eol="1"> (AP)

The pope, 83, was responding to whether he believed coronavirus could spur ecological conversion, the idea for people to lead more environmentally conscious lives through the understanding that the natural world is a creation of God.

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Pope Francis said the world had yet to respond to recent “partial catastrophes” related to the climate.

“Who now speaks of the fires in Australia, or remembers that 18 months ago a boat could cross the North Pole because the glaciers had all melted?” he asked.

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“Who speaks now of the floods? I don’t know if these are the revenge of nature, but they are certainly nature’s responses.”

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The pope went on to say he believed the COVID-19 outbreak that has ravaged the globe could inspire change.

This story originally appeared in the New York Post. For more from the Post, click here.

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2020-04-09 10:09:26Z
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Saudi Arabia declares ceasefire in Yemen over coronavirus - CNN

The ceasefire in the five-year conflict was set to begin Thursday, according to coalition spokesman Col. Turki al-Malki. SPA said the move was prompted by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' call for a pause of hostilities in the country in order to counter the spread of Covid-19.

The coronavirus has now infected more than 1.5 million people and killed over 88,000 worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Malki also said the temporary ceasefire would pave the way for talks between the Saudi-backed government in Aden, and Iran-backed Houthi rebels based in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa.

The ceasefire would create the environment for the UN "to hold a meeting between the legitimate government and the Houthis, and a military team from the (Saudi-led) coalition under the supervision of the UN envoy to discuss his proposals on the steps and mechanisms to implement a permanent ceasefire in Yemen," said Malki, according to SPA.

The UN welcomed Saudi Arabia's announcement. "I am grateful to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Coalition for recognizing and acting on this critical moment for Yemen," Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen, Martin Griffiths said in a UN statement Wednesday. "The parties must now utilize this opportunity and cease immediately all hostilities with the utmost urgency, and make progress towards comprehensive and sustainable peace"

A Houthi rebel spokesman said the group was working on a plan to end the war.

"Building on the call of the United Nation's Secretary-General for a ceasefire in Yemen, we have put forward a comprehensive national vision to the UN that includes a comprehensive end to the war, and a complete end to the blockade," Mohammed Abdel Salam tweeted. "It includes the safety of Yemen and its unity and independence and it establishes political dialogue with a view to a new transition."

A source with knowledge of the Saudi officials' perspective on the process expressed hope for a deal, saying it's what the Saudis have been working towards for a long time.

According to the source, the aim of the ceasefire is to create an environment for UN talks to succeed.

Yemen has been embroiled in a years-long civil war that has pitted a coalition backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. The war has claimed thousands of lives and led to mass starvation and outbreaks of disease in the country.

CNN's Nada Altaher in Abu Dhabi and Elizabeth Joseph in New York contributed to this report.

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2020-04-09 09:34:00Z
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