White House News in Chinese - About (weebly.com)
Dominic Dwyer, a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) team tasked with investigating the origins of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), sits in a car arriving to Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan, Hubei province, China February 3, 2021.
Biden orders review of COVID origins as lab leak theory debated
The pandemic has killed more than 3 million people worldwide and battered the global economy The origin of the virus remains contested among experts.
May 27 - President Joe Biden ordered aides to find answers to the origin of the virus that causes COVID-19, saying on Wednesday that US intelligence agencies are pursuing rival theories potentially including the possibility of a laboratory accident in China.
Intelligence agencies are considering two likely scenarios but still lack strong confidence in their conclusions and are hotly debating which is more probable, Biden said.
The conclusions were detailed in a report to Biden, who asked his team in March to detail whether the novel coronavirus "emerged from human contact with an infected animal or from a laboratory accident," according to the president's written statement.Biden's unusual public disclosure about private and inconclusive US intelligence assessments revealed a debate raging within his administration over where the novel coronavirus originated.
It also lent credence to a theory that the virus may have emerged from a Chinese research laboratory instead of in nature... more
Biden orders review of COVID origins as lab leak theory debated
The pandemic has killed more than 3 million people worldwide and battered the global economy The origin of the virus remains contested among experts.
May 27 - President Joe Biden ordered aides to find answers to the origin of the virus that causes COVID-19, saying on Wednesday that US intelligence agencies are pursuing rival theories potentially including the possibility of a laboratory accident in China.
Intelligence agencies are considering two likely scenarios but still lack strong confidence in their conclusions and are hotly debating which is more probable, Biden said.
The conclusions were detailed in a report to Biden, who asked his team in March to detail whether the novel coronavirus "emerged from human contact with an infected animal or from a laboratory accident," according to the president's written statement.Biden's unusual public disclosure about private and inconclusive US intelligence assessments revealed a debate raging within his administration over where the novel coronavirus originated.
It also lent credence to a theory that the virus may have emerged from a Chinese research laboratory instead of in nature... more
May 26, 2021
Secretary of State Blinken News Conference in Jordan
Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a news conference in Amman, Jordan after a series of meeting with leaders from Israel, Egypt, and Jordan.
Secretary of State Blinken News Conference in Jordan
Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a news conference in Amman, Jordan after a series of meeting with leaders from Israel, Egypt, and Jordan.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken steps off his plane upon arrival at Queen Alia International Airport, in Amman, Jordan on May 26, 2021.
Blinken in Mideast on mission to shore up Israel-Palestine ceasefire
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken lands in Jordan on the last leg of his tour aimed at consolidating a ceasefire that ended the worst Israeli bombardment in years on besieged Gaza.
May 17 - ...Rebuild US ties with Palestinians
After talks with Palestinian President Abbas in the occupied West Bank, Blinken vowed to rebuild US relations with the Palestinians by reopening a consulate in Jerusalem, as well as giving millions in aid for the war-battered Gaza.
The announcements signalled a break with US policy under former president Donald Trump, who had shuttered the diplomatic mission for Palestinians in 2019 and slashed aid to the Palestinian Authority.
Blinken has vowed to "rally international support" to rebuild the destruction in hard-hit Gaza, with the clause that its Hamas government be excluded from the process.
In the long term, Blinken evoked the "possibility of resuming the effort to achieve a two-state solution, which we continue to believe is the only way to truly assure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state, and of course to give the Palestinians the state they're entitled to"... more details
I have asked Secretary Blinken to travel to the Middle East to meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders and other key partners. He will discuss our continued commitment to Israel’s security and the coordinated effort to ensure assistance reaches Gaza. https://t.co/Mg6X0qvt7L
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 24, 2021
Related Articles:
US offers aid, Palestine consulate but avoids engaging in peace process
Biden sends Blinken on Mideast blitz to ‘solidify Gaza ceasefire’
Israel stalls entry of some aid trucks into battered Gaza
Assessing the impact of the violence visited upon Gaza
US resumes aid to Palestinians severed under Trump
Blinken in Mideast on mission to shore up Israel-Palestine ceasefire
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken lands in Jordan on the last leg of his tour aimed at consolidating a ceasefire that ended the worst Israeli bombardment in years on besieged Gaza.
May 17 - ...Rebuild US ties with Palestinians
After talks with Palestinian President Abbas in the occupied West Bank, Blinken vowed to rebuild US relations with the Palestinians by reopening a consulate in Jerusalem, as well as giving millions in aid for the war-battered Gaza.
The announcements signalled a break with US policy under former president Donald Trump, who had shuttered the diplomatic mission for Palestinians in 2019 and slashed aid to the Palestinian Authority.
Blinken has vowed to "rally international support" to rebuild the destruction in hard-hit Gaza, with the clause that its Hamas government be excluded from the process.
In the long term, Blinken evoked the "possibility of resuming the effort to achieve a two-state solution, which we continue to believe is the only way to truly assure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state, and of course to give the Palestinians the state they're entitled to"... more details
I have asked Secretary Blinken to travel to the Middle East to meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders and other key partners. He will discuss our continued commitment to Israel’s security and the coordinated effort to ensure assistance reaches Gaza. https://t.co/Mg6X0qvt7L
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 24, 2021
Related Articles:
US offers aid, Palestine consulate but avoids engaging in peace process
Biden sends Blinken on Mideast blitz to ‘solidify Gaza ceasefire’
Israel stalls entry of some aid trucks into battered Gaza
Assessing the impact of the violence visited upon Gaza
US resumes aid to Palestinians severed under Trump
Fact-checking the Blinken-Netanyahu press conference
May 26, 2021
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s press conference with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu followed a predictable script. Here are three times the US turned a blind eye to Israel’s crimes.
May 26, 2021
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s press conference with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu followed a predictable script. Here are three times the US turned a blind eye to Israel’s crimes.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-MO attends a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on pending judicial nominations on Capitol Hill in Washington on April 28, 2021.
Senate Passes Hawley, Braun Bill for Biden Admin to Declassify Intel on Wuhan Lab
May 27 - The U.S. Senate has unanimously passed a bill that seeks to require President Joe Biden’s administration declassify all intelligence relating to the origin of COVID-19, including information about what happened at the Wuhan laboratory at the start of the pandemic.
Republican Sens. Josh Hawley (Miss.) and Mike Braun (Ind.) submitted their proposal, known as the COVID-19 Origin Act of 2021, to require that the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) declassify to Americans U.S. intelligence on the alleged links between China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the origins of the CCP virus last month. The bill was passed by unanimous consent.
Hawley told the Senate floor on Wednesday that the bill gives an opportunity to the American public to evaluate the evidence for themselves, adding that this is only the first step... more
Senate Passes Hawley, Braun Bill for Biden Admin to Declassify Intel on Wuhan Lab
May 27 - The U.S. Senate has unanimously passed a bill that seeks to require President Joe Biden’s administration declassify all intelligence relating to the origin of COVID-19, including information about what happened at the Wuhan laboratory at the start of the pandemic.
Republican Sens. Josh Hawley (Miss.) and Mike Braun (Ind.) submitted their proposal, known as the COVID-19 Origin Act of 2021, to require that the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) declassify to Americans U.S. intelligence on the alleged links between China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the origins of the CCP virus last month. The bill was passed by unanimous consent.
Hawley told the Senate floor on Wednesday that the bill gives an opportunity to the American public to evaluate the evidence for themselves, adding that this is only the first step... more
The Covid-19 origin story has massive political consequences
May 27, (CNN) - A growing storm over the origins in China of Covid-19 has explosive political implications for the United States at home and abroad, as well as the dueling legacies of two presidents that will be defined by the pandemic.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday told Americans he had ordered US intelligence agencies to report in 90 days on whether the virus originated not in animals and spread to humans but might have escaped from a Chinese laboratory.
The move deepened a mystery encompassing the pernicious spread of a deadly pathogen, an intricate epidemiological puzzle, the opacity of a totalitarian system and the bitter overtones of a superpower rivalry. It will fan doubts about the World Health Organization's capacity to tease out lessons from the current crisis in order to prevent future pandemics.
In the US, it leaves both the former Trump administration and the Biden White House facing calls for transparency about their efforts to establish how the virus started and whether politics tainted their investigative efforts. If it turns out the virus did escape from a laboratory, former President Donald Trump may be able to claim some vindication. But it would also highlight how his repeated habit of trashing the truth and bending intelligence to suit his own political ends shattered his credibility on this and other issues... more details
May 27, (CNN) - A growing storm over the origins in China of Covid-19 has explosive political implications for the United States at home and abroad, as well as the dueling legacies of two presidents that will be defined by the pandemic.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday told Americans he had ordered US intelligence agencies to report in 90 days on whether the virus originated not in animals and spread to humans but might have escaped from a Chinese laboratory.
The move deepened a mystery encompassing the pernicious spread of a deadly pathogen, an intricate epidemiological puzzle, the opacity of a totalitarian system and the bitter overtones of a superpower rivalry. It will fan doubts about the World Health Organization's capacity to tease out lessons from the current crisis in order to prevent future pandemics.
In the US, it leaves both the former Trump administration and the Biden White House facing calls for transparency about their efforts to establish how the virus started and whether politics tainted their investigative efforts. If it turns out the virus did escape from a laboratory, former President Donald Trump may be able to claim some vindication. But it would also highlight how his repeated habit of trashing the truth and bending intelligence to suit his own political ends shattered his credibility on this and other issues... more details
Statement by President Joe Biden on the Investigation into the Origins of COVID-19
MAY 26, 2021
Back in early 2020, when COVID-19 emerged, I called for the CDC to get access to China to learn about the virus so we could fight it more effectively. The failure to get our inspectors on the ground in those early months will always hamper any investigation into the origin of COVID-19.
Nevertheless, shortly after I became President, in March, I had my National Security Advisor task the Intelligence Community to prepare a report on their most up-to-date analysis of the origins of COVID-19, including whether it emerged from human contact with an infected animal or from a laboratory accident. I received that report earlier this month, and asked for additional follow-up. As of today, the U.S. Intelligence Community has “coalesced around two likely scenarios” but has not reached a definitive conclusion on this question. Here is their current position: “while two elements in the IC leans toward the former scenario and one leans more toward the latter – each with low or moderate confidence – the majority of elements do not believe there is sufficient information to assess one to be more likely than the other.”
I have now asked the Intelligence Community to redouble their efforts to collect and analyze information that could bring us closer to a definitive conclusion, and to report back to me in 90 days. As part of that report, I have asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required, including specific questions for China. I have also asked that this effort include work by our National Labs and other agencies of our government to augment the Intelligence Community’s efforts. And I have asked the Intelligence Community to keep Congress fully apprised of its work.
The United States will also keep working with like-minded partners around the world to press China to participate in a full, transparent, evidence-based international investigation and to provide access to all relevant data and evidence. source from
MAY 26, 2021
Back in early 2020, when COVID-19 emerged, I called for the CDC to get access to China to learn about the virus so we could fight it more effectively. The failure to get our inspectors on the ground in those early months will always hamper any investigation into the origin of COVID-19.
Nevertheless, shortly after I became President, in March, I had my National Security Advisor task the Intelligence Community to prepare a report on their most up-to-date analysis of the origins of COVID-19, including whether it emerged from human contact with an infected animal or from a laboratory accident. I received that report earlier this month, and asked for additional follow-up. As of today, the U.S. Intelligence Community has “coalesced around two likely scenarios” but has not reached a definitive conclusion on this question. Here is their current position: “while two elements in the IC leans toward the former scenario and one leans more toward the latter – each with low or moderate confidence – the majority of elements do not believe there is sufficient information to assess one to be more likely than the other.”
I have now asked the Intelligence Community to redouble their efforts to collect and analyze information that could bring us closer to a definitive conclusion, and to report back to me in 90 days. As part of that report, I have asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required, including specific questions for China. I have also asked that this effort include work by our National Labs and other agencies of our government to augment the Intelligence Community’s efforts. And I have asked the Intelligence Community to keep Congress fully apprised of its work.
The United States will also keep working with like-minded partners around the world to press China to participate in a full, transparent, evidence-based international investigation and to provide access to all relevant data and evidence. source from
FAST THINKING: How bad will Israeli-Palestinian violence get?
GET UP TO SPEED
A new conflict has erupted on an old battleground. Israeli bombings of the Gaza Strip intensified today, following Hamas rocket attacks on Israel. It’s the worst outbreak of violence there in at least seven years and has left dozens dead, mostly in Gaza. The attacks follow weeks of tensions at the al-Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site, and efforts by Israel to remove longtime Palestinian residents from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Protests in that neighborhood have now evolved into solidarity protests and rioting in cities and towns across Israel. Is an all-out war brewing? What does this mean for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s future? What role will regional and global powers now play in the confrontation? From Washington to Jerusalem, our experts are here to weigh in.
MIND THE POLITICAL FALLOUT
GET UP TO SPEED
A new conflict has erupted on an old battleground. Israeli bombings of the Gaza Strip intensified today, following Hamas rocket attacks on Israel. It’s the worst outbreak of violence there in at least seven years and has left dozens dead, mostly in Gaza. The attacks follow weeks of tensions at the al-Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site, and efforts by Israel to remove longtime Palestinian residents from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Protests in that neighborhood have now evolved into solidarity protests and rioting in cities and towns across Israel. Is an all-out war brewing? What does this mean for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s future? What role will regional and global powers now play in the confrontation? From Washington to Jerusalem, our experts are here to weigh in.
MIND THE POLITICAL FALLOUT
- Netanyahu could be ousted from his post after a dozen years in power if his rivals form a coalition in the coming weeks, following a fourth inconclusive election in two years. Shalom notes that Netanyahu “could, ironically, reap political benefit from the deterioration” of relations with the Palestinians. The prime minister’s rivals Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett have expressed support for the Gaza strikes, which will make crucial Arab political parties in Israel less likely to join with them to form a new government, Shalom points out. “Generally, Israelis have less of an appetite now for politics and will be less inclined also to oust Netanyahu and transfer the reins to a less experienced crew,” he says.
- Among Palestinians, Tuqa points to widespread dissatisfaction with Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas, given the Authority’s “lack of any actual authority over their lives, and its latest attempt to subvert any semblance of a democratic process by canceling recent elections.”
- The bottom line? “The escalation in violence and the excessive use of force by Israeli security forces will put both Israelis and Palestinians back on the defensive and push them further to their respective extremes,” Tuqa says.
NBC Nightly News Broadcast (Full) - May 26th,
May 27, 2021
At least 8 dead in shooting at San Jose rail yard, President Biden orders U.S. intel review of Covid origin, and Los Angeles DA speaks on criminal justice reforms.
May 27, 2021
At least 8 dead in shooting at San Jose rail yard, President Biden orders U.S. intel review of Covid origin, and Los Angeles DA speaks on criminal justice reforms.
