News Headlines - 20 April 2020

▽U.S. source: North Korean leader in grave danger after surgery

The US is monitoring intelligence that North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, is in grave danger after a surgery, according to a US official with direct knowledge.
Kim recently missed the celebration of his grandfather’s birthday on April 15, which raised speculation about his well-being. He had been seen four days before that at a government meeting.

▽15 Hong Kong pro-democracy figures arrested in latest police round up | Hong Kong Free Press HKFP

Police arrested 15 high-profile pro-democracy figures on Saturday in connection with allegedly “organising and participating in unlawful assemblies,” according to the security bureau... According to the League of Social Democrats, the arrests related to demonstrations on August 18 and October 1, 2019.

▽COVID-19: Can air-conditioning systems aid in spreading coronavirus? - Gulf News

The early version of a recent Chinese study looks at the possibility of transmission aided by air-conditioning systems in enclosed spaces. The report published by CDC takes into account 10 cases in three families. The only common venue of probable contact of the three families (referred to as A, B and C by the researchers) before being diagnosed as positive for coronavirus was at a restaurant.

▽Nigerian security forces killed 18 people during lockdowns: rights panel - Reuters

Nigeria, sub-Saharan Africa’s most populous country and biggest energy producer, has recorded 407 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 12 deaths from the highly contagious lung disease... The NHRC, an independent body, said in a statement dated April 15 that there had been “eight documented incidents of extrajudicial killings leading to 18 deaths” between March 30 and April 13.
It said the killings were carried out by the Nigerian Correctional Service, the police force and army.

▽Iran Parliament: Virus Deaths Nearly Double Reported Figures - The New York Times

The death toll in Iran from the coronavirus pandemic is likely nearly double the officially reported figures, due to undercounting and because not everyone with breathing problems has been tested for the virus, a parliament report said... Iran on Wednesday put the death toll at 4,777, out of 76,389 confirmed cases of the virus - still making it the Mideast's worst outbreak by far.