Italy has suspended flights from Bangladesh for a week due to coronavirus, Italian Health Ministry on Tuesday.

The Italian Minister of Health Roberto Speranza ordered the suspension of flights arriving from Bangladesh following the significant number of positive cases of Covid-19 found on the last flight that arrived in Rome, said a media release.

In agreement with the Italian Foreign Minister, Luigi Di Maio, a suspension valid for a week has been arranged during which new precautionary measures will be worked out for extra Schengen and extra EU arrivals, it said.

Turkish Airlines on Tuesday cancelled its flights between Dhaka and Istanbul until July 15 considering the current Covid-19 situation.

Although the flights between the two destinations resumed on July 3, the present Covid-19 situation has been reevaluated by the concerned authority of Turkey and announced cancellation of flights.

Turkish Airlines regretted the cancellation of flights TK712/3 until 15th July.

The airline company also said that refund requests for cancelled flights will be auto refund in the GDS system.

Read Also: Turkish Airlines, Air Arabia get flight permission

The customers have been suggested to make a query call either over cell +8801844059961 or mail to info@aeromate.com.bd.

The international Call center Number +90850333849 will be available 24/7 days and website https://bit.ly/2BwxUcn.

Seventy-three countries have warned that they are at risk of stock-outs of antiretroviral (ARV) medicines as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, says a new study on Monday. 

Twenty-four countries reported having either a critically low stock of ARVs or disruptions in the supply of these life-saving medicines, according to a new WHO survey conducted ahead of the International AIDS Society’s biannual conference. 

The survey follows a modelling exercise convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNAIDS in May which forecasted that a six-month disruption in access to ARVs could lead to a doubling in AIDS-related deaths in sub-Saharan Africa in 2020 alone.

In 2019, an estimated 8.3 million people were benefiting from ARVs in the 24 countries now experiencing supply shortages. 

This represents about one third (33%) of all people taking HIV treatment globally.  

While there is no cure for HIV, ARVs can control the virus and prevent onward sexual transmission to other people.

A failure of suppliers to deliver ARVs on time and a shut-down of land and air transport services, coupled with limited access to health services within countries as a result of the pandemic, were among the causes cited for the disruptions in the survey.

“The findings of this survey are deeply concerning,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. 

“Countries and their development partners must do all they can to ensure that people who need HIV treatment continue to access it. We cannot let the COVID-19 pandemic undo the hard-won gains in the global response to this disease.

Stalled progress

According to data released today from UNAIDS and WHO, new HIV infections fell by 39% between 2000 and 2019. 

HIV-related deaths fell by 51% over the same time period, and some 15 million lives were saved through the use of antiretroviral therapy.

However, progress towards global targets is stalling. Over the last two years, the annual number of new HIV infections has plateaued at 1.7 million and there was only a modest reduction in HIV-related death, from 730 000 in 2018 to 690 000 in 2019.  

Despite steady advances in scaling up treatment coverage – with more than 25 million people in need of ARVs receiving them in 2019 – key 2020 global targets will be missed.

HIV prevention and testing services are not reaching the groups that need them most. Improved targeting of proven prevention and testing services will be critical to reinvigorate the global response to HIV.

WHO guidance and country action

COVID-19 risks exacerbating the situation. WHO recently developed guidance for countries on how to safely maintain access to essential health services during the pandemic, including for all people living with or affected by HIV. 

The guidance encourages countries to limit disruptions in access to HIV treatment through “multi-month dispensing,” a policy whereby medicines are prescribed for longer periods of time – up to six months. 

To date, 129 countries have adopted this policy.

Countries are also mitigating the impact of the disruptions by working to maintain flights and supply chains, engaging communities in the delivery of HIV medicines, and working with manufacturers to overcome logistics challenges.

New opportunities to treat HIV in young children

At the IAS conference, WHO will highlight how global progress in reducing HIV-related deaths can be accelerated by stepping up support and services for populations disproportionately impacted by the epidemic, including young children. 

In 2019, there were an estimated 95 000 HIV-related deaths and 150 000 new infections among children. Only about half (53%) of children in need of antiretroviral therapy were receiving it.  

A lack of optimal medicines with suitable pediatric formulations has been a longstanding barrier to improving health outcomes for children living with HIV.

Last month, WHO welcomed a decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to approve a new 5mg formulation of dolutegravir (DTG) for infants and children older than 4 weeks and weighing more than 3 kg. 

This decision will ensure that all children have rapid access to an optimal drug that, to date, has only been available for adults, adolescents and older children. 

WHO is committed to fast-tracking the prequalification of DTG as a generic drug so that it can be used as soon as possible by countries to save lives. 

“Through a collaboration of multiple partners, we are likely to see generic versions of dolutegravir for children by early 2021, allowing for a rapid reduction in the cost of this medicine,” said Dr Meg Doherty, Director of the Department of Global HIV, Hepatitis and STI Programmes at WHO. 

“This will give us another new tool to reach children living with HIV and keep them alive and healthy.”

Tackling opportunistic infections

Many HIV-related deaths result from infections that take advantage of an individual’s weakened immune system. 

These include bacterial infections, such as tuberculosis, viral infections like hepatitis and COVID-19, parasitic infections such as toxoplasmosis and fungal infections, including histoplasmosis.

The WHO is releasing new guidelines for the diagnosis and management of histoplasmosis, among people living with HIV. 

Histoplasmosis is highly prevalent in the WHO Region of the Americas, where as many as 15 600 new cases and 4500 deaths are reported each year among people living with HIV. Many of these deaths could be prevented through timely diagnosis and treatment of the disease.

In recent years, the development of highly sensitive diagnostic tests has allowed for a rapid and accurate confirmation of histoplasmosis and earlier initiation of treatment. 

However, innovative diagnostics and optimal treatments for this disease are not yet widely available in resource-limited settings.

Two high-ranking Myanmar military generals involved in the systematic and brutal violence against the Rohingya people and other ethnic minorities have been designated for sanctions under a powerful new regime established by the UK.

Forty-nine individuals and organisations including two Myanmar military generals involved in some of the most notorious human rights violations and abuses in recent years have been designated for sanctions,  under a powerful new regime established today by the UK, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has announced.

It is the first time that the UK has sanctioned people or entities for human rights violations and abuses under a UK-only regime, and will allow the UK to work independently with allies such as the US, Canada, Australia and the European Union.

The individuals and organisations are the first wave of designations under the new regime, with further sanctions expected in the coming months, according to the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

The ground-breaking global regime means the UK has new powers to stop those involved in serious human rights abuses and violations from entering the country, channelling money through UK banks, or profiting from our economy.

The measures will target individuals and organisations, rather than nations.

The UK’s first wave of sanctions under this new regime targeted:

25 Russian nationals involved in the mistreatment and death of auditor Sergei Magnitsky, who uncovered widespread Russian corruption by a group of Russian tax and police officials

20 Saudi nationals involved in the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi

Two high-ranking Myanmar military generals involved in the systematic and brutal violence against the Rohingya people and other ethnic minorities

Two organisations involved in the forced labour, torture and murder that takes place in North Korea’s gulags

Underlining the UK’s position as a global force for good, this new regime showcases our commitment to the rules-based international system and to standing up for victims of human rights violations and abuses around the world.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, said: "Today we’re designating 49 people and organisations for responsibility in some the worst human rights abuses in recent memory."

This is a demonstration of Global Britain’s commitment to acting as a force for good in the world, Raab said.

Following his announcement in Parliament, the Foreign Secretary will meet with Sergei Magnitsky’s widow and son Natalia and Nikita, along with his friend and colleague Bill Browder, at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

The regime will allow the UK to target individuals and organisations around the world unlike conventional geographic sanctions regime, which only target a country.

It could also include those who commit unlawful killings perpetrated against journalists and media workers, or violations and abuses motivated on the grounds of religion or belief, according to the British government 

A special unit will consider the use of future sanctions, with teams across the department monitoring human rights issues.

They will ensure targets under the landmark regime will have to meet stringent legal tests before the UK decides to designate, ensuring the sanctions are robust and powerful.

The suite of measures can also apply to those who facilitate, incite, promote, or support these violations/abuses, as well as those who financially profit from human rights violations and abuses.

The UK will continue to utilise a range of tools to tackle serious human rights violations and abuses around the world, including the UN and EU multilateral sanctions regimes.

Bangladesh has said that certain quarters are purposefully doing harm to the government against the backdrop of its recent success in curbing human trafficking. 

"There are reasons to believe that," said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a clarification mentioning that law enforcing agencies in Bangladesh are already working to arrest traffickers involved in illegally sending people to Vietnam.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs came to know from its Mission in Hanoi that 27 Bangladeshis who were lured by human traffickers to Vietnam recently are now temporarily staying at a hotel provided by the Vietnam authorities. 

Those people who illegally go abroad lured by traffickers are also responsible for tarnishing the image of Bangladesh abroad, MoFA said.  

Bangladesh government, as a recognition to all its hard work, has recently been upgraded to tier-2 in the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) country report released by US State Department. 

Vietnam is not a country where much work opportunities are available for prospective foreign workers. Brokers traffic Bangladeshi workers there in the hope of landing them in prosperous countries such as Australia, New Zealand and other rich parts of South East Asia, according to the MoFA. 

In the close collaboration between Bangladesh Embassy in Hanoi and the Vietnamese government, a special flight was operated in the Hanoi-Dhaka-Hanoi route on July 2. 

Eleven Bangladeshi returned from Vietnam on that flight. 

Twenty-seven people were also listed for repatriation but they declined to avail the flight stating that Bangladesh government has to pay their airfare. 

Bangladesh does not have a provision to pay the airfare of returning illegal workers, said the government. 

In all repatriation flights, it is the passengers themselves who pay for their passage rather than from tax payers money.   

In case of flights carrying workers, the employer country pays for the airfare. 

They do not fall under either category as they did not go with employment visas; they went to Vietnam as visitors. 

After the departure of the flight to Dhaka, later in the day on July 2, they attempted to forcibly enter the premise of Bangladesh Embassy in Vietnam which is a violation of both international law and Vietnam’s local law, MoFA said. 

These "unruly people" first declined to fly home, and secondly, if they had anything to say, they could state that in a disciplined manner rather than attempting to forcibly occupy the embassy in a foreign country tarnishing the image of the country, said MoFA.  

They are now threatening on social media that if their demands are not met they will similarly occupy all Bangladesh embassies abroad, the statement reads. 

They went live on social media and made derogatory remarks against the country.

Such subversive activities staying in friendly foreign country is not acceptable by any standard, MoFA said. 

Because of the flight restrictions caused by COVID-19 pandemic, it will take time to resume flights on the Dhaka-Hanoi route.

Also read: Govt facilitated repatriation of 4,422 foreigners from Bangladesh: MoFA