Weeks into France’s strict coronavirus lockdown, Mohammed, a 14-year-old with autism, took a pickax and started hitting the wall of his family’s house.His explanation: “Too long at home, too hard to wait.”The disruptions in daily life caused by the virus pandemic are a particularly trying ordeal for children with disabilities and the people who love them and are caring for them confined at home while special-needs schools and support programs remain closed.Mohammed hasn’t picked up the ax again since the incident last month, his father, Salah, said with relief. But the boy still gets frustrated being stuck inside and says, “I want to break the house down.”The family, like others who spoke to The Associated Press about their experiences, spoke on the condition of being identified by first name only out of concern for the privacy of their children.Mohammed, a 14-year-old with autism, on his bike outside his home April 15, 2020, in Mantes-la-Jolie, west of Paris.Making matters worse, Mohammed’s mother, who works in a nursing home, has been on sick leave after testing positive for COVID-19. For weeks, she had to live isolated on the top floor of their house in the Paris suburb of Mantes-la-Jolie. Her health has since improved.The physical distance from her family was particularly hard for Mohammed, who has a close relationship with his mother.“We kept telling him that there’s the disease. He took note. Then he tried again to go up and see her,” Salah said.Violent outbursts, incomprehension, disputes, panic attacks: Life under lockdown has been a shock to many children with special needs who suddenly lost their reassuring routines, cut off from friends and teachers. And France’s virus lockdown measures — now in their second month and set to run until at least May 11 — are among Europe’s strictest.At home, Mohammed requires constant attention so that he won’t injure or endanger himself.“That’s tough on him. We reprimand him, saying no. … We need to repeat and repeat,” Salah said. The father admits to his own fatigue, working at home as a telecom engineer while caring for Mohammed and his two brothers, ages 12 and 8.Salah knows how to detect signs on Mohammed’s face when he is under too much pressure and may get angry: “I don’t let things get heated.”Mohammed normally attends the Bel-Air Institute near Versailles, which provides specialized educational and therapeutic services for dozens of children with different types of disabilities. His teacher, Corentin Sainte Fare Garnot, is doing his best to help.“If you remove crutches from someone who needs them from one day to the next, it gets very complicated,” he said.“The feeling of loneliness and lack of activity can be very deep” for people with autism, the teacher said. Mohammed calls him several times a day.Aurelie Collet, a manager at the Bel-Air Institute, said that at first, some teenagers didn’t understand the lockdown rules keeping them stuck at home and kept going out. Others who had been well-integrated in their classes turned inward, isolating themselves in their bedrooms.The staff developed creative tools to keep communicating and working with the children, including through social networks, she said.In this photo taken April 16, 2020, Jerome, second left, Nadege and their children Thomas, 17, right and Pierre, 14, pose outside their home in Montigny-le-Bretonneux, near Paris.Thomas, 17, and Pierre, 14, brothers with intellectual disabilities who also go to the Bel-Air, have been similarly destabilized by lockdown restrictions.“I feel worried about how long the lockdown will last, what’s going to happen next,” Thomas said. The teenager wonders “how many people will get the virus, when the epidemic will stop?”Another big concern for Thomas is his future; an internship he planned to do this summer is likely to be postponed.Pierre says he’s having more nightmares than usual, adding that the lockdown is also prompting more family quarrels.At first, their parents recalled, the boys acted as if they were on vacation, playing all day and calling their friends. The parents organized activities to give Pierre and Thomas more structure amid the public health crisis.Pierre especially misses the gardening he used to do at the Bel-Air, so he planted seeds in pots to grow radishes.Under nationwide restrictions, the French can only leave home for essential services, like buying food or going to the doctor, and must stay close to home. Physical activity in public is strictly limited to one hour and within a nearby radius. Police routinely fine violators.Recognizing the burden the regulations place on people with autism, French President Emmanuel Macron announced an exception that allows them to go out to customary places without having to observe time or distance limits.The new challenges the pandemic presents to children with special needs are familiar to millions of families around the world. Across the U.S., teachers are exploring new ways to deliver customized lessons from afar, and parents of children with disabilities are not only home-schooling but also adding therapy, hands-on lessons and behavioral management to their responsibilities.Salah has started taking Mohammed out again for bike riding, an activity his eldest son enjoyed before the pandemic.“This is like a safety valve to him. He needs it. … We’re having a hard time following him, he’s going ahead, happily shouting,” Salah said with a smile in his voice.Sainte Fare Garnot is helping the family find concrete solutions. Because playing soccer with his brothers in the garden has proven difficult for Mohammed because the rules of team games are too complex for him, Sainte Fare Garnot suggested that the three boys instead take shots at goal in turn.France is still playing catch-up with some developing-country peers in terms of educational opportunities for children with autism spectrum disorders, and teachers fear that some will also have to spend months relearning skills they may have lost during the lockdown period.The president has announced that schools will be “progressively” reopened starting May 11, but authorities have not provided details yet about special-needs children. France counts more than 350,000 school students with disabilities, including 70,000 in the special education system that includes the Bel-Air.The uncertainty is especially hard for young people like Mohammed. “I know he will ask me again,” his teacher said. “‘When is it ending?’”  
…

The mix of fury and disappointment among residents was palpable inside a cafe in the southeastern Turkish city of Mardin after the government replaced the popular mayor with a trustee.One year on from local elections, 40 out of 65 municipalities won by the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) are now under the control of government-appointed trustees.In Mardin, the HDP’s Ahmet Turk won 56.2 percent of the vote in March 2019. But in August he was one of the first, along with those in nearby Diyarbakir and Van, to be removed and replaced by the government.Six months after the move, residents in Mardin, where the governor now runs the city of over 800,000 people, were especially critical of a lack of service and development.”No one bothers, no one wants to do anything, and no one raises their voice. We’re speaking to you now — who knows what will happen to us tomorrow?” cafe manager Firat Kayatar told AFP during a visit late February.”They may as well not hold elections in the southeast because they had two elections, and after both they appointed trustees,” said Kayatar, who lives in the old city.Complaints unheard”No one listens anyway,” one of the cafe’s customers, Abdulaziz, 57, chipped in. “We can’t complain to anyone. [The governor] brings bananas but we need bread.”Another man nearby who did not give his name said young people went to university but were unable to find a job.”This is the problem Mardin faces, too,” he said.The party described the mayors’ removals as an “attack” on Kurds but the government has accused the HDP of links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).Kurds make up around 20 percent of Turkey’s overall population.The HDP accused Ankara last month of making it “even harder for the Kurds to fight the coronavirus” through the “repression of Kurdish democratic institutions, their municipalities in particular.”Such actions are not new. Ankara removed 95 HDP mayors after the party won 102 municipalities in 2014.”When it comes to the HDP, just slapping trumped-up terror charges is the easiest way to go and it’s just a political attempt to destroy their legitimacy,” said Emma Sinclair-Webb, Turkey director of Human Rights Watch (HRW).FILE – Faruk Kilic, city chairman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party, speaks during a interview in Mardin, Turkey, Feb. 25, 2020.Accusation against PKKThe chairman in Mardin for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) defended the government’s actions, accusing the PKK of using the HDP mayors to obtain control.”In fact these mayors were Qandil representatives,” Faruk Kilic said, referring to where the PKK leadership and rear bases are located in a mountainous region in Iraq.”None of the mayors made statements of their own independent will,” Kilic added, a claim the HDP strongly denies.The Turkish government has repeatedly accused the HDP mayors of using the municipalities’ money to support the PKK, or hiring relatives of PKK militants.The interior ministry claimed some mayors attended political rallies, demonstrations and even funerals of PKK militants.The HDP says 21 of its mayors are behind bars.The PKK has been waging an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984, and the group is blacklisted as a terror organization by Ankara and its Western allies.The government’s aim was to “collapse any distinction between the HDP, a legal party playing by the rules of the game in parliament and democratically elected representatives from this party, and an armed organization,” HRW’s Sinclair-Webb said.’Economic’ reason for dismissals?Veteran Kurdish politician Turk was acquitted in February in one case cited against him when he was removed as mayor of Mardin the first time in 2016.The AKP’s Kilic said if mayors were later acquitted on the charges against them, they would return to their posts, but added “there’s evidence against many” charged.Eren Keskin, of the Ankara-based Human Rights Association (IHD), believed there was an “economic” motive to the dismissals.”The first municipalities they appointed a trustee for — Diyarbakir, Mardin and Van — are provinces that are really open to economic development,” Keskin said.Her claim was supported by HDP deputy chairman Saruhan Oluc, who said the government “keeps itself strong through the income and profit from local administrations.”Oluc accused the government of handing out money and favors to its allies as well as companies and foundations close to it through the municipalities’ coffers.
…

U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, issued a rare joint statement Saturday commemorating a 1945 World War II link-up of U.S. and Soviet troops on their way to defeat Nazi Germany as an example of how their countries can cooperate.The statement by Trump and Putin came amid deep strains in U.S.-Russian ties over a raft of issues, from arms control and Russia’s intervention in Ukraine and Syria to U.S. charges that Russia has spread disinformation about the novel coronavirus pandemic and interfered in U.S. election campaigns.The Wall Street Journal reported that the decision to issue the statement sparked debate within the Trump administration, with some officials worried it could undercut stern U.S. messages to Moscow.The joint statement marked the anniversary of the April 25, 1945, meeting on a bridge over the Elbe River in Germany of Soviet soldiers advancing from the east and American troops moving from the West.“This event heralded the decisive defeat of the Nazi regime,” the statement said. “The ‘Spirit of the Elbe’ is an example of how our countries can put aside differences, build trust and cooperate in pursuit of a greater cause.”Last Elbe statement in 2010The Journal said the last joint statement marking the Elbe River bridge link-up was issued in 2010, when the Obama administration was seeking improved relations with Moscow.Trump had hoped to travel to Moscow to mark the anniversary. He has been complimentary of Putin, promoted cooperation with Moscow and said he believed the Russian leader’s denials of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.Senior administration officials and lawmakers, in contrast, have been fiercely critical of Russia, with relations between the nuclear-armed nations at their lowest point since the end of the Cold War.The Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday issued a bipartisan report concurring with a 2017 U.S. intelligence assessment that Russia pursued an influence campaign of misinformation and cyber hacking aimed at swinging the vote to Trump over his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.U.S. intelligence officials have warned lawmakers that Moscow is meddling in the 2020 presidential election campaign, which Russia denies.
…

The worldwide number of COVID-19 cases continues to climb, bringing misery and pain to all echelons of society.The global count of cases has reached more than 2.8 million people, and more than 197,000 people have died.There have been a growing number of coronavirus cases aboard an Italian cruise ship docked in Japan with a crew but no passengers.  The Costa Atlantica had been headed to China for repairs but was diverted to Nagasaki earlier this year.Crew members were told to stay aboard the ship but media reports say some of them were spotted in Nagasaki.Local officials say at least 91 crew members, many of them asymptomatic, have tested positive for the virus. One has been hospitalized.In Europe, Spain has more than 219,000 coronavirus cases and more than 22,500 deaths, followed by Italy with more than 192,000 cases and almost 26,000 deaths.A nurse wearing a face mask writes down a telephone message from a deceased patient’s family member, to be put in the victim’s coffin, in Corsica, April 23, 2020.Several European countries have seen a decrease in new cases and are preparing to gradually reopen businesses and ease restrictions.The number of U.S. infections is creeping up to a million with more than 905,000 cases and nearly 52,000 deaths. Despite the rising tally, several states took steps Friday to reopen their economies, with Georgia and Oklahoma allowing salons, spas and barbershops to reopen. Some business owners said it was too early to open and doing so could spark a new surge in coronavirus infections, despite facing financial collapse if they do not.The U.S. Congressional Budget Office says the economic hardship caused by the coronavirus in the United States will last through next year, as the pandemic wreaks havoc on the financial health of countries around the world.The nonpartisan agency said the U.S. budget deficit will grow from $1 trillion to $3.7 trillion this year and said the unemployment rate would rise from 3.5 percent in February to 16 percent in September. It predicted that unemployment would fall after that time but would remain in double digits through 2021.The report puts pressure on the U.S. government as it tries to balance the concerns over the growing federal deficit with the approval of stimulus money meant to combat the outbreak’s economic effects.A woman wears a face mask to protect herself from COVID-19 as she walks past a painting in Hong Kong, April 25, 2020.On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a $484 billion relief package to extend additional support for small business loans and to help hospitals expand COVID-19 testing. The money is part of more than $3 trillion the U.S. government has spent to boost the economy.Earlier Friday, the G-20 called on “all countries, international organizations, the private sector, philanthropic institutions, and individuals” to contribute to its funding efforts to fight COVID-19, setting an $8 billion goal.An international forum for the governments and central bank governors of 19 nations and the European Union said Friday the G-20 already has raised $1.9 billion. Saudi Arabia, the current holder of the G-20 presidency, contributed $500 million.With no proven remedy for the coronavirus, health officials worldwide are recommending protective measures such as hygiene, social distancing and wearing masks and gloves. But people in many places are growing tired of restrictions, even as the number of cases grows.The coronavirus has had a devastating effect on the global economy, but the International Monetary Fund and other organizations warn that developing countries will be the worst hit.The United Nations food agency projects that some 265 million people could experience acute hunger this year, twice as many as last year. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on governments to ensure health care is available to all people and that economic aid packages help those most affected. In Brief:COVID-19’s toll continues to climb, with cases now having surpassed 2.8 millionMore than 197,000 people have died from the diseaseThe U.S. has more than 905,000 cases and almost 52,000 deathsSome states, nevertheless, are taking steps to reopen their economiesA congressional office sees U.S. COVID economic hardship lasting through 2021  Spain has more than 219,000 cases and over 22,500 deathsItaly has more than 192,000 cases and almost 26,000 deathsAuthorities in Italy say the country has passed the peak of the outbreakWith their cases down, parts of Europe are preparing to ease restrictions 
…

The coronavirus lockdown in many European countries has led to less pollution. But policy decisions in coming months will make clear if an economic recovery helps or hurts environmental gains.Europe’s cities, where streets are usually congested, are now quiet, as people are forced to stay at home due to the coronavirus pandemic.Alberto Gonzalez Ortiz, an air quality expert at the European Environment Agency, says air pollution is down since lockdowns were implemented in cities across the continent.“In some cities, it’s from one week to another we see a reduction of more than half of the concentrations. The reductions are not the same in all cities. Because the lockdown measures are not the same or not so intense either in all countries and they have started at different times,” Gonzales said.In Europe, 2019 was the hottest year ever recorded. But with millions of people forced to stay home, consuming less and traveling less, there is a reduction in emissions, carbon and air pollution.But countries across the continent want to slowly ease restrictions to get the economy going again. Some people are concerned a quick return to life as it was before COVID-19 might undo newly gained environmental benefits.Imke Lübbeke of the environmental group World Wildlife Fund (WWF) says there is no reason yet to celebrate about environmental gains.A sign hung by activists of the Fridays for Future movement is seen on a tree in Erfurt, Germany, April 24, 2020.“These are temporary results following from the lockdowns enforced in many countries and cities to address the spread of COVID. But they are not structural emissions reductions or a way out of air pollution yet. We are working hard to make clear that the climate change crisis and all the environmental crisis is not going away once we’ve addressed the COVID crisis,” Lübbeke said.
European Union leaders are discussing an economic recovery package that some say will cost about $2 trillion. And governments are promising billions to businesses, including to polluting industries.Climate Action Network Europe Director Wendel Trio says this moment in history is an opportunity for governments to decide if they want to steer the recovery in a direction that makes current gains lasting.“Both carmakers and airlines, for instance, have been rather reluctant to accept the changes that are needed to go to a climate-neutral society. And I think now is the time to make it clear to them. If they want public money, if they want the taxpayer to pay for their future, then actually their future should also be of benefit to society,” Trio said.There is a fear among some climate advocacy groups that the economic recovery will be valued more highly than addressing climate change.  BusinessEurope, a large corporate lobby group, already wrote to the European Union requesting a delay in climate-related regulations.A speech on climate German Chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to deliver Monday (April 27) might indicate what the EU’s most influential member will be pushing for when it comes to balancing environmental issues against a recovering economy.
 
…

The worldwide number of COVID-19 cases continues to climb, bringing misery and pain to all echelons of society.The global count of cases has reached more than 2.8 million people, and more than 197,000 people have died.There have been a growing number of coronavirus cases aboard an Italian cruise ship docked in Japan with a crew but no passengers.  The Costa Atlantica had been headed to China for repairs but was diverted to Nagasaki earlier this year.Crew members were told to stay aboard the ship but media reports say some of them were spotted in Nagasaki.Local officials say at least 91 crew members, many of them asymptomatic, have tested positive for the virus. One has been hospitalized.In Europe, Spain has more than 219,000 coronavirus cases and more than 22,500 deaths, followed by Italy with more than 192,000 cases and almost 26,000 deaths.A nurse wearing a face mask writes down a telephone message from a deceased patient’s family member, to be put in the victim’s coffin, in Corsica on April 23, 2020.Several European countries have seen a decrease in new cases and are preparing to gradually reopen businesses and ease restrictions.The number of U.S. infections is creeping up to a million with more than 905,000 cases and nearly 52,000 deaths. Despite the rising tally, several states took steps Friday to reopen their economies, with Georgia and Oklahoma allowing salons, spas and barbershops to reopen. Some business owners said it was too early to open and doing so could spark a new surge in coronavirus infections, despite facing financial collapse if they do not.The U.S. Congressional Budget Office says the economic hardship caused by the coronavirus in the United States will last through next year, as the pandemic wreaks havoc on the financial health of countries around the world.The nonpartisan agency said the U.S. budget deficit will grow from $1 trillion to $3.7 trillion this year and said the unemployment rate would rise from 3.5 percent in February to 16 percent in September. It predicted that unemployment would fall after that time but would remain in double digits through 2021.The report puts pressure on the U.S. government as it tries to balance the concerns over the growing federal deficit with the approval of stimulus money meant to combat the outbreak’s economic effects.A woman wears a face mask to protect herself from COVID-19 as she walks past a painting in Hong Kong, April 25, 2020.On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a $484 billion relief package to extend additional support for small business loans and to help hospitals expand COVID-19 testing. The money is part of more than $3 trillion the U.S. government has spent to boost the economy.Earlier Friday, the G-20 called on “all countries, international organizations, the private sector, philanthropic institutions, and individuals” to contribute to its funding efforts to fight COVID-19, setting an $8 billion goal.An international forum for the governments and central bank governors of 19 nations and the European Union said Friday the G-20 already has raised $1.9 billion. Saudi Arabia, the current holder of the G-20 presidency, contributed $500 million.With no proven remedy for the coronavirus, health officials worldwide are recommending protective measures such as hygiene, social distancing and wearing masks and gloves. But people in many places are growing tired of restrictions, even as the number of cases grows.The coronavirus has had a devastating effect on the global economy, but the International Monetary Fund and other organizations warn that developing countries will be the worst hit.The United Nations food agency projects that some 265 million people could experience acute hunger this year, twice as many as last year. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on governments to ensure health care is available to all people and that economic aid packages help those most affected.   
…

An unmanned cargo spacecraft with food, fuel and supplies docked at the International Space Station (ISS) on Saturday.Russian Progress 75 cargo ship left the Baikonur Cosmodrom in Kazakhstan, a few minutes before 1 a.m. GMT and transported almost 3 tons of food and other supplies to the ISS.Scientists and staff, both in Baikonur and at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, monitored the three-hour journey and the docking.The cargo ship is set to remain at the station until December, when it will leave and burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.   
…

How do you protest in the era of the coronavirus?  In Russia, “virtual protesters” have clustered outside government buildings, at a safe social distance, and they post messages online demanding more financial assistance from authorities. Young climate change activists have heeded the call by Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, the founder of the global school strike movement, to avoid big protests to help contain the novel coronavirus.  “We have to adapt. That is what you have to do in a crisis,” she told activists last month. She encouraged her followers to move their climate action protests online and use the hashtag #DigitalStrike. 2019 was a revolutionary year, with 12 months of protests and mass mobilizations from Hong Kong to Bolivia, and from France to Lebanon, rocking political establishments as they unfolded.  Few parts of the world were unaffected. FILE – Volunteers give a face mask to a food delivery courier during an action for free distribution of masks protesting against price increases for viral protection masks in pharmacies in St. Petersburg, Russia, April 1, 2020.In Russia’s capital, Moscow, protesters were outraged by rigged elections. In Britain, people rallied against Brexit. Serbia, Ukraine, Albania and the central European states all experienced major demonstrations. Separatists battled police in the restive region of Catalonia. Dissent in the Middle East prompted talk of a new Arab Spring. In Sudan, President Omar al-Bashir was overthrown by the military following months of mass protests. In the Americas, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela all experienced popular unrest. But 2020 has become the year of house confinement.  Protesters who want to keep within lockdown rules — either out of a sense of social responsibility or fear of punishment — must navigate social distancing and travel restrictions to make their voices heard. Many fear contracting the potentially deadly coronavirus if they congregate.  Many movements are determined not to be silenced, although they acknowledge they can’t be as effective now as they were last year.  “It is quite challenging to continue striking and organizing, if people cannot meet physically,” climate action activist Linus Steinmetz told German broadcasters.   As in other European countries, climate change activists in Germany have gone digital, blanketing the internet and social media with demands for deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, sometimes focusing on government institutions with tweets. German branches have launched a YouTube learning module for children not attending school. “We’re trying to figure things out now,” Luisa Neubauer, a German activist, told Yale e360, an American online environment magazine. “Beating the coronavirus is the first thing we have to do, but the fight to save the climate can’t stop. It will continue in other ways and when this crisis is over, the climate crisis will look different. We may even have a better chance. We know that political will, when it is there, can move mountains. We are experiencing this right now in the corona crisis.” Other protest movements are also exploring alternate ways to mobilize support and promote their causes — as well as to oppose government measures.  FILE – An anti-government protester stands in front of the Lebanese riot police who wear masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, during a protest over the deepening financial crisis in Beirut, Lebanon, April 23, 2020.This week in Beirut, hundreds of Lebanese demonstrators used the Poles’ model, reclaiming streets emptied by the coronavirus lockdown. They stayed in their cars to observe social distancing rules, honking horns and waving Lebanese flags out of their car windows, hoping to revive a cross-sectarian protest movement that flared in October but was unable to push through the radical reforms demonstrators want. “It’s so good to be back. There’s no better feeling,” protester Hassan Hussein Ali, 22, told AFP. “Corona has killed everything, but it hasn’t stopped the corruption of our politicians, so it will not stop us either.” FILE – People keep social distancing amid concerns over the country’s coronavirus outbreak, during a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, Israel, April 19, 2020.In neighboring Israel, this week also saw anti-government protests. In Tel Aviv, a few thousand gathered to express their disapproval of a new unity government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The protest was given the go-ahead by authorities with organizers promising that attendees would observe social distancing restrictions and wear face masks. They marked up a square for the protest to ensure physical distancing rules were followed.   Police said in a statement, “Protests are regarded as an essential right that should be reserved for every citizen, as long as all restrictions and instructions are obeyed.” FILE – In this March 30, 2020, photo, ultra-Orthodox Jews gather during a protest against government’s measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus in the Orthodox neighborhood of Mea Shearim in Jerusalem.But in Jerusalem, hundreds of ultra-Orthodox adherents gathered to protest the lockdown of Mea Shearim, one of the oldest Jewish neighborhoods in the city, populated by Haredi Jews. The protesters ignored social distancing regulations and clashed with police. With anger and frustration simmering in many countries in Europe and the Middle East, and people tiring of state-ordered lockdowns, authorities worry the overall interruption in physical political protest will amount to a lull before the storm. Poverty, economic hardship and bankruptcy in many cases are compounding pre-coronavirus grievances.  FILE – Activists install a banner reading “More beds can save lives, a hospital not a commercial center, requisition of the Hotel Dieu” to protest against a project next to Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, April 21, 2020.In France, police fear a coming explosion of violence in the troubled working-class suburbs of Paris following several nights of small-scale rioting against police enforcement of the lockdown. The leader of France’s largest police union said Wednesday that he was worried the country could explode in violence. “It may get very difficult,” said Yves Lefebvre, head of the SGP Unite police union. “If tomorrow we are confronted by widespread urban violence, we would have trouble keeping on top of it unless a curfew was put in place, and the army called in to help enforce it.” 
…

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Friday decried crimes against “civilization” and demanded an apology from Turkey as his country marked the 105th anniversary of the WWI-era Armenian genocide.The genocide is a “crime not only against our ethnic identity, but also against human civilization,” Pashinyan said in a message after laying flowers at a genocide memorial in the capital, Yerevan.Commemorative events were scaled back this year because of the coronavirus restrictions imposed throughout the country, and the Yerevan memorial was closed to the public.In a short video address at the memorial, Pashinyan said that after more than a century, “the consequences of the genocide have not been eliminated.””Turkey has not yet apologized for what it did,” he said, adding that Yerevan “demands” that Ankara officially recognize the massacres as genocide.Armenians say up to 1.5 million people were killed as the Ottoman Empire was falling apart during World War I in what amounted to genocide, a claim supported by some 30 countries.Turkey rejects labelTurkey fiercely rejects the genocide label, arguing that 300,000 to 500,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died in civil strife when Armenians rose up against their Ottoman rulers and sided with invading Russian troops.Yerevan has long demanded Ankara provide financial compensation and restore property rights to the descendants of those killed in the 1915-18 massacres, which Armenians call Meds Yeghern or the Great Crime.Pashinyan said Armenians “are still facing the challenges posed to our people at the outset of the 20th century.”He said that instead of visiting the memorial, Armenians worldwide could send their names to a mobile number to have them displayed on the pillars of the memorial until dawn.Commemorations started in Armenia on Thursday evening, when street lights were switched off and church bells chimed across the country.Yerevan residents also switched off lights in their homes and many lit candles or waved mobile telephone flashlights at windowsills.Last month, Armenia — which has reported 1,596 coronavirus cases and 27 deaths — declared a state of emergency and imposed a nationwide lockdown to slow the spread of the infection.
…