The World Health Organisation (WHO) has attributed the spike in dengue fever to global warming marked by higher average temperatures, precipitation, and a longer period of drought.

Raman Velayudhan, WHO’s Head of the Global Programme on Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases, told journalists at the UN in Geneva on Friday.

“About half of the world’s population is at risk of dengue, and dengue affects approximately 129 countries.

“We estimate that about 100 to 400 million cases are reported every year. This is basically an estimate, and the American region alone has reported about 2.8 million cases and 101,280 deaths,” said Mr Velayudhan.

Dengue, also called breakbone fever, is the most common viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people.

Most people with dengue do not have symptoms and recover in one to two weeks. But some people develop severe dengue and need hospital care.

According to him, dengue is spread by the Aedes species of mosquito. The disease is more common in tropical and subtropical climates. Its incidence has grown dramatically worldwide in recent decades.

“In 2000, we had about half a million cases, and today in 2022, we recorded over 4.2 million, which really shows an eight-fold increase,” he said.

He said the number could well increase with more and more accurate figures.Asia represents around 70 per cent of the global disease burden, and the future outlook is bleak, according to the WHO expert.

The Aedes mosquito is well-established in Europe, and dengue and chikungunya infections have been reported for over a decade.

“European countries are also on alert because Europe has recorded an Aedes transmission of either dengue or chikungunya since 2010.

“We have had more outbreaks since then, and it is estimated that the mosquito is present in about 22 European countries,” Mr Velayudhan said.

Numerous factors in addition to climate change have driven the spread of dengue fever, such as the increased movement of people and goods, urbanisation and pressure on water and sanitation.

“The mosquito manages to survive even when there is water scarcity,” the WHO expert said.

“So, both during a flood situation as well as a drought situation, dengue can increase. The virus and the vector multiply faster at a higher temperature. This is a well-known fact,” the expert said.

Dengue fever does not have a specific treatment, and no direct drug intervention is available. Usually, the disease is treated with medicines to treat fever and pain.

An indictment was unsealed yesterday charging a Nevada doctor and his wife with fraudulently obtaining approximately $1.3 million in COVID-19 pandemic relief loans through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

According to court documents, Kofi Sarfo, 58, of Las Vegas, is a medical doctor and the owner and president of Vista Medical Associates, a Las Vegas medical practice.

His wife, Rose Sarfo, 54, also of Las Vegas, is the office manager and treasurer of Vista Medical Associates. Kofi and Rose Sarfo allegedly conspired to submit false loan applications to obtain EIDL and PPP pandemic relief funds.

Rather than spending the money on their business as represented in the loan applications, the Sarfos allegedly used at least some of the funds to purchase stocks and cryptocurrency.

The Sarfos are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. In addition, Kofi Sarfo is charged with one count of money laundering.

If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and for each count of wire fraud.

Kofi Sarfo also faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on the money laundering charge. Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Spencer L. Evans of the FBI Las Vegas Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Las Vegas Field Office is investigating the case. Trial Attorney Kyle Crawford of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case.

In May 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud.

The task force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts.

The president of Stanford University, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, announced that he would resign at the end of August after an independent probe of his scientific papers that spanned months found substantial flaws in studies he supervised going back decades.

The probe panel was constituted of outside independent scientists who concluded that Mr Tessier-Lavigne’s works had “multiple problems” and “fell below customary standards of scientific rigour and process,” especially for such a potentially important paper, New York Times reported.

Although the scientist’s professionalism has been publicly questioned on Pubpeer, an online crowdsourcing network for publishing and discussing scientific work, the investigation started after a series of publications by the university’s student newspaper, Stanford Daily which cast doubt on several works produced in laboratories overseen by Mr Tessier-Lavigne.

Last November, the newspaper reported that images were manipulated in published scientific papers with Mr Tessier-Lavigne as either lead author or co-author.

The 89-page report from the Stanford panel was based on more than 50 interviews and a review of more than 50,000 documents.

It concluded that Mr Tessier-Lavigne’s employees engaged in improper data manipulation or poor scientific practices, leading to significant flaws in five papers on which he was listed as the primary author.

The panel concluded that the scientist failed to take adequate action to fix errors in a number of cases and questioned why he did not request a correction for the 2009 study after further research indicated that its main conclusion was incorrect.

Additional allegations of fraud about the 2009 study, which Mr Tessier-Lavigne produced while he was a senior scientist at Genentech (a biotechnology corporation), were made public by The Stanford Daily in February.

It claimed that a Genentech probe discovered that the study used fabricated data and that Mr Tessier-Lavigne made an effort to conceal its conclusions.It also added that Genentech had apprehended a postdoctoral researcher who had worked on the study, fabricating data.

The assertions, which largely depended on unnamed sources, were categorically rejected by Mr Tessier-Lavigne and the former researcher, now a medical professional working in Florida.

The newspaper articles’ most serious claim was that the scientist covered up malpractices which included falsification of data in a 2009 Alzheimer’s study, but the panel ruled against the assertion, concluding that it was “mistaken” on the basis of lack of proof.

Following the review, Mr Tessier-Lavigne will ask that the 2009 paper, published in Nature and another Nature study, undergo important modifications.

He also stated that he would ask for the retraction of three papers: one in 1999 published in the journal Cell; two in 2001 that appeared in Science.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) expressed concern over the continuing spread of false claims and conspiracy theories concerning the new global pandemic accord, currently negotiated by member states.

WHO director-general Tedros Ghebreyesus, in a statement, cautioned that just as mis- and disinformation undermined the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he said they were undermining efforts to keep the world safer from future pandemics.

He drew comparisons with the efforts by the tobacco industry to derail negotiations at the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

“The same thing is happening now. Groups with vested interests are claiming falsely that the accord is a power grab by WHO and that it will stymie innovation and research. Both claims are completely false,” stated Mr Ghebreyesus.

“I need to put this plainly, those who peddle lies about this historic agreement are endangering the health and safety of future generations.”

The pandemic accord aims to promote solidarity and equity among countries in forging an effective pandemic response. Negotiations on the document are held at the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB), which WHO members at the World Health Assembly established.

The WHO chief also emphasised that the agreement was between countries and countries alone.

“WHO will not be a party,” he said, noting that If two companies enter into a business contract and use lawyers to help them develop it, “that doesn’t give the lawyers control over the contract, nor make the lawyers a party to it. It’s the same here.”

Mr Ghebreyesus also highlighted that extreme heat, driven by the El Niño weather pattern and climate change, amplifies pre-existing conditions and puts increased pressure on health systems.

“Extreme heat takes the greatest toll on those least able to manage its consequences, such as older people, infants and children, and the poor and homeless,” he said.

In collaboration with the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), WHO is supporting countries to develop heat health action plans to coordinate preparedness and reduce the impacts of excessive heat on health.

The WHO director-general also spoke about the outbreak of 29 cases of H5N1 avian influenza in cats in Poland, the rebound in immunisation services after COVID-19-induced disruptions and the impact of poverty on rehabilitation services for those in need.

“For most people, rehabilitation services, including assistive technologies, are often out-of-pocket expenses that they cannot afford. Ensuring access to quality rehabilitation services, without financial hardship, is an essential part of every country’s journey towards universal health coverage,” he said.

Nigeria has received 9.3 million grant from the Global Initiative for Vaccine Equity (CanGIVE) to boost COVID-19 vaccine delivery and strengthen the broader health system in the country.

The Canadian High Commissioner, Jamie Christoff, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja during the launch of CanGIVE in Nigeria.

The Federal Ministry of Health hosted the event in collaboration with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NpHCDA) and Nigeria Centre For Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), supported by World Health Organisation (WHO).

Mr Chrisoff said Nigeria, amongst six other countries, would benefit from Canada’s global initiative of CAD317 million.

He said as the world moved beyond emergency pandemic response, continued access to COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments would remain critical for high-risk groups.

“In some low and lower-middle-income countries, vaccination rates remain low, and health systems have been overstretched by the pandemic,” Mr Chrisoff explained.

“This poses significant challenges to long-term COVID-19 management and recovery efforts.”

The Canadian diplomat added that under the CanGIVE, WHO projects would be implemented in seven countries, with Nigeria receiving the greatest share.

“Nigeria was also amongst the first countries to receive COVID-19 aid from Canada in September 2021. This important project is another important example of Canadian historical institutional relationship with the support of Nigeria in the critical work for preventing diseases and protecting those most at risk in the country,” he stressed.

He also mentioned that countries required support to integrate COVID-19 vaccination into ongoing immunisation programmes and primary health services in a way that strengthened the broader health system and reversed the backsliding trend in routine immunisation over the pandemic.

“Canada is contributing to these efforts, building on Canada’s long-standing commitment to investing in and supporting health systems worldwide,” the Canadian high commissioner to Nigeria added.

“Through CanGIVE, Canada will continue to support vaccination for high-risk groups where vaccination coverage remains low, particularly in humanitarian contexts and hard-to-reach places.”

No fewer than 2.6 million people have been displaced since the start of the conflict on April 15 in Sudan, according to the UN, citing the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

It stated that nearly 200,000 people were displaced by fighting inside Sudan over the past week.

According to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), more than 730,000 people have fled Sudan since the start of the war.

On Tuesday, UN deputy secretary general Amina Mohammed and the head of the World Food Programme (WFP), Cindy McCain, visited a camp in eastern Chad that has taken in Sudanese refugees.

Ms Mohammed said she was inspired by the courage of those who had fled there, many of whom were women and children, UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric told journalists in New York.

“The UN deputy chief said that she also heard stories of unimaginable suffering in Sudan and enormous needs in Chad. More international support is needed for refugees and their host communities,” she said.

Back in Sudan, humanitarians continue to provide relief to civilians.In North Darfur, the UN children’s agency (UNICEF) and partners are supporting water trucking to gathering sites for internally displaced people and healthcare facilities. They have also constructed more than two dozen latrines.

Mr Dujarric said WHO was working closely with Sudan’s Ministry of Health and other partners in states sheltering internally displaced people to provide essential reproductive, sexual, maternal and pediatric care.

On Monday, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and partners managed to deliver life-saving supplies, including 3,000 reproductive health kits, to six hospitals in Khartoum.

He said UNFPA was committed to reaching all women and girls in need in Sudan with urgent health and protection services.

On Wednesday, world record holder Tobi Amusan announced she was charged with an anti-doping violation, with the Athletic Integrity Unit (AIU) claiming she missed three tests in the space of 12 months.

“Today, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has charged me with an alleged rule violation for having three missed tests in 12 months,” Amusan wrote on Instagram.

Amusan, scheduled to defend her world record in next month’s championship, said she would not give in to the accusation and will fight the charges before a sports tribunal.

“I intend to fight this charge and will have my case decided by a tribunal of three arbitrators before the start of next month’s World Championships,” she said.

Amusan added,

“I am a CLEAN ATHLETE, and I am regularly; (maybe more than the usual) tested by the AIU – I was tested within days of my third ‘missed test.’ I have FAITH that this will be resolved in my favour and that I will be competing at the World Championships in August.”

If found guilty, Amusan would miss out on next month’s championship and could be suspended for up to two years.

The 26-year-old athlete became Nigeria’s first world record holder at the 2022 World Championships in Oregon.

She also had an outstanding performance in July, winning all her five races in Stockholm Diamond League, Nigeria trials, Silesia Diamond League, and on July 18, the Gyulai István Memorial meet in Hungary.

A federal indictment was unsealed today charging a Prince George’s County, Maryland, man and woman with their involvement in laundering the proceeds of various fraud schemes targeting victims’ retirement and investment accounts.

According to allegations in the indictment, from approximately September 2017 to April 2020, Dasola Abdulraheem, 41, and Ismaila Abdulraheem, 44, both Nigerian nationals and formerly spouses, received the proceeds of various financial frauds into accounts that they controlled, and thereafter, conducted financial transactions with the proceeds to disguise the nature and source of the funds.

The indictment further alleges that unknown co-conspirators targeted the victims of this scheme by gaining access to their financial accounts, typically retirement or investment accounts.

In one case, co-conspirators are alleged to have gained access to a victim’s severance payout from his former employer.

The indictment states that once the conspirators compromised a victim’s account, they posed as the victim and instructed the victim’s financial institution to add a new outside bank account to the victim’s account.

The outside account was controlled by either the Abdulraheems or one of the couriers that they used.

Once the victim’s financial institution added a conspirator’s account to the victim’s account, the conspirators allegedly directed that money from the victim’s account be siphoned from the victim’s account and deposited into the Abdulraheems’ accounts or into a co-conspirator’s account.

The proceeds are alleged to have been used in some cases to purchase salvage cars at auction or to wire money to business entities in Nigeria.

The indictment further alleges that the Abdulraheems attempted to conceal their involvement in laundering proceeds by using shell companies, such as “ISMRAN LLC,” “DAISIM GLOBAL LINK LLC,” “RUKLAT INTERNATIONAL VENTURES,” and “DAISIM INTERNATIONAL” to receive and launder the proceeds of the fraud scheme.

The defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, and unlawful monetary transactions. If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the money laundering charges, and a maximum of 10 years in prison for the unlawful monetary transactions charges.

Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Derek W. Gordon, Special Agent in charge of U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C., made the announcement.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katherine E. Rumbaugh and Kathleen E. Robeson are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:23-CR-107.An indictment is merely an accusation.

The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Once again, a wall in the famous Colosseum in Rome has been scratched – this time, it is said to have been a young male German tourist.

The 17-year-old allegedly scratched the brickwork inside the amphitheatre, popular with tourists in the heart of the Italian capital, on Saturday evening, the ANSA news agency reported on Sunday.

According to the report, he was a student from Germany. After scratching a wall on the ground floor of the monument, he was apprehended by security personnel, accompanied by a teacher.

The Carabinieri then reported him to the police.This is now the third case within a few weeks of tourists allegedly scratching the masonry inside the Colosseum.They all now face hefty fines.

A few years ago, a Russian tourist who scratched a wall in the Colosseum had to pay a fine of €20,000 ($22,442).

Last Friday, a young female Swiss tourist was caught scratching the first letter of her name on the wall. The Italian police were able to identify the 17-year-old, the media reported on Sunday.

At the end of June, the first case caused outrage in Italy and beyond the country’s borders after a young man from England scratched his name and that of his girlfriend into a wall.

After the criticism, the man, 31, apologised with a curious excuse: He said he had not known how ancient the monument was.

The Roman landmark, which is about 2,000 years old, is one of Italy’s most popular tourist attractions and is considered the symbol of the Eternal City.

It was built in the first century AD and is considered the largest amphitheatre in the world.Sometimes cruel and brutal gladiator fights took place in ancient Rome.

The Colosseum attracts millions of visitors every year.

A German woman accused of supporting the Islamic State is expected to be handed a verdict in her case in Frankfurt on Monday.

According to the indictment, the woman left for Syria in the spring of 2016 with her two sons to join the terrorist group.

The group at that time controlled large swathes of Syria and Iraq.

The attorney general’s office demanded a two-year suspended sentence, while the woman’s lawyer requested a slightly lower sentence of 18 months.

The 33-year-old mother is also accused of violating her duty of care to her children.

The Katsina government is set to partner Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK, to tackle infectious diseases in the north-western state.

Ibrahim Kaula, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Dikko Radda, disclosed this in a statement he issued on Thursday in Katsina.

He said the aim was to establish a centre that’ll become the first of its kind in northern Nigeria dedicated to fight infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance.

The statement said that through strategic partnerships, the centre would leverage on the expertise of international and national researchers, healthcare professionals and policymakers to improve the healthcare ecosystem in the state.

“This collaboration with the Wellcome Sanger Institute marks a significant milestone in our efforts to transform healthcare in Katsina State.

“By establishing a Centre of Excellence, we will enhance our capacity to combat infectious diseases and improve the overall health outcomes of our citizens.

“We look forward to working closely with international experts and local stakeholders to achieve our shared vision.

“The Wellcome Sanger Institute at Cambridge is renowned for its expertise in research and comprehensive approach to tackling infectious diseases,” the CPS said.

According to him, the groundbreaking initiative will serve as a hub for cutting-edge research, advanced diagnostics, and innovative treatment strategies.

“The proposed Centre of Excellence will address the pressing healthcare challenges faced by the northern region of Nigeria, specifically focusing on infectious diseases.

“Universities, including the School of Hygiene, Oxford University and Cambridge University are partnering with Wellcome Sanger Institute to conduct high-impact research.

“A partnership with Sanger Institute is like building a network with all UK universities,” he noted.

He said the development signifies a remarkable step forward in the state’s healthcare sector and positions Katsina as a leader in the fight against infectious diseases in Nigeria.

Legislators in California, United States, have passed a bill that would require judges in the state to consider black criminals when being convicted.

The bill, backed by state democrats, would also allow the judges to determine how long to sentence such convicted blacks to prison for crimes committed.

Reggie Jones-Sawyer, a democratic assembly member, quietly introduced the Bill 852 in February, saying it was aimed to rectify racial bias in the justice system.

In May, the assembly passed the little-known legislation – which would see judges weighing how persecuted minorities have been. Now, the measure is currently being considered in the state’s upper chamber, the senate.

The bill would add a section to the Penal Code of California Senate regarding race and, if signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, it would require the courts, whenever they have the authority to determine a prison sentence, to “rectify” alleged racial bias in the criminal justice system.

“It is the intent of the Legislature to rectify the racial bias that has historically permeated our criminal justice system as documented by the California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans.

“Whenever the court has discretion to determine the appropriate sentence according to relevant statutes and the sentencing rules of the Judicial Council, the court presiding over a criminal matter shall consider the disparate impact on historically disenfranchised and system-impacted populations,” the proposed new section to the Penal Code reads.

The bill added that race as a factor when making a judgment will help to determine the “appropriate sentence according to relevant statutes.”

The controversial bill comes as the state continues to consider the cost and overall implications of paying black residents reparation for slavery and racism.

Although, the California task force referenced in the bill was created by state legislation signed by Mr Newsom in 2020, to examine the possibility of implementing statewide reparations as a way to make amends for slavery and racism.

Late last month, the task force released its final recommendations, which the state legislature will now consider whether to implement and send to the governor’s desk to be signed into law.

In the report, the task force proposed dozens of statewide policies and ways to calculate monetary reparations designed to redress slavery and historical injustices against Black Americans.

According to the task force, such history has created lingering consequences that exist today in the form of systemic racism.The task force estimated the minimum dollar amount in harm that California has caused or could have prevented totals at least $1 million per eligible Black Californian.

In terms of criminal justice specifically, the task force determined that qualifying Black residents could be owed over $115,000, or around $2,352 per year of residency in California from 1971 to 2020, as compensation for over-policing in Black communities, excess felony drug arrests, and disproportionate prison time during the so-called war on drugs.

The final report also included proposals to end cash bail and the prosecution of low-level crimes.

Bill 852 seeks to build off the task force’s findings and recommendations by mandating that California courts fight what it describes as racial bias in sentencing that can disadvantage Black people and other minorities.

At least six people have lost their lives and nine have been injured in monsoon rain-triggered flash floods during the last 24 hours in Pakistan, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said.

Three women and a child were among those who lost their lives in separate flood-related incidents, according to an NDMA report released on Monday.

The total death toll in Pakistan from this season’s monsoon rains and floods that started on June 25 has risen to around 86, along with 151 injured, the NDMA said.

The eastern Punjab province was the worst-hit region, where the death toll was 52, followed by northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 20.

The report further said that 97 houses were destroyed and 46 livestock animals perished in different parts of Pakistan.

Rescue and relief operations by the NDMA, other government organisations, volunteers, and non-governmental organisations were underway in the flood-hit areas.

Three refugee boats with no fewer than 300 people on board went missing in the sea between Africa and Spain’s Canary Islands, Helena Maleno of the Spanish aid organisation Caminando Fronteras said on Monday.

Ms Maleno said the two boats, each with up to 60 people on board, left Senegal on June 23 for the Canary Islands, and a third with about 200 people left the coastal town of Kafountine on June 27.

The organisation contacted the relatives of the missing people, who had yet to hear from the people on board.

“We are very worried because after the unrest in Senegal in June and because of political persecution, people are even less prepared than usual to flee in a hurry,” she said.

In June, 19 boats with refugees from Senegal arrived on the Canary Islands, while not one had been registered since the beginning of the year.

Ms Maleno criticised Spain for only using one search plane, which was only in the air for a few hours daily.There is also a lack of cooperation with Morocco, “which only works to ward off refugees but not to rescue them,” she complained.

“If 300 Germans were missing in the Atlantic, there would be a huge search operation,” she added.

Kafountine is about 1,700 kilometres from the Spanish island group, and the Atlantic Ocean, with its strong currents and high waves, is considered one of the most dangerous migration routes to Europe.