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Greece is preparing to reopen to international tourism in the coming days, a move expected to bring in as many as 10 million travelers from several countries. The re-start is vital for the weak Greek economy that relies heavily on tourism. However, health officials fear tourism could fan a flare-up in COVID-19 and have grave repercussions for Greece, after a decade of financial recession.Health concerns have surged after a flight from Doha this week brought in 19 cases of the coronavirus.The number may seem small but, matched up against the near-zero infections that Greece has been showing for weeks now, infectious disease experts such as Haralambos Gogos are worried.We are on alert, he says, monitoring the situation and holding one meeting after another to best tackle this matter without having to shut down flights and tourism before they actually kick off.Health concerns have also arisen from a recent report by Greece’s National Public Health Organization showing a startling 36% rise in imported COVID-19 cases in the last 10 days. That’s almost twice as many as the country recorded in total from the start of the pandemic here five months ago.However alarming, officials in Athens say, Greece’s tourism re-launch will proceed as planned on June 15, when the first wave of travelers is due to fly in from 29 countries.Those countries are currently showing low rates of COVID-19 infection. Beginning July 1, though, Athens hopes to include several more countries, opening its doors to between 6 million and 10 million foreign travelers.Emmanouil Dermitzakis, a professor of genetics at the medical school at the University of Geneva , says that means thousands of COVID-19 cases hitting Greece.A rough estimate, he says, shows that about 10% of those incoming travelers will be carriers, and of them, as many as 700 will show symptoms and require treatment.For a nation counting less than 3,000 infections and 180 deaths from the pandemic, the predicted figures look daunting.Dermitzakis says Greece’s random testing capabilities have significantly increased in recent months.The situation, he says, is manageable. But the spread of the virus during the summer will ultimately come down to how Greeks themselves comply with social distancing rules — or not. Since lockdown measures eased here in May, thousands of Greeks have taken to public places, defying social distancing rules in ways that have experts like Demitzakis concerned.It’s understandable that after months of lockdown, Greeks are out and about, but this does not justify and warrant the defiance we are currently seeing, he says.Ultimately, DermitzakIs says, Greek will have to make a stark choice between altering those behaviors to suit the demands of this different summer or suffer unemployment and a financial crisis if the pandemic roils out of control, forcing Greece to shut down again.
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French military forces killed al-Qaida’s North Africa chief, Abdelmalek Droukdel, during an operation in Mali, officials said Friday.”On June 3, French army forces, with the support of their local partners, killed the emir of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, Abdelmalek Droukdel, and several of his closest collaborators, during an operation in northern Mali,” French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly wrote on Twitter.French forces had been hunting Droukdel, a key Islamist fighter, for more than seven years, officials said.The French-led operation against Droukdel was aided by U.S. forces, which provided intelligence and surveillance support to “fix the target,” according to U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).”This mission is a collective win,” AFRICOM spokesman Col. Chris Karns told VOA.”This was a great example of cooperation and partnership to get after a common threat,” he said, praising France’s commitment to fighting both al-Qaida and Islamic State-linked terror groups in West Africa.Officials said Droukdel, who was known to be involved in all aspects al-Qaida’s operations in the region, had been seeking to expand the amount of territory under his control and increase the number of attacks.“This definitely is a blow to AQIM and certainly degrades their ability to plan and carry out operations,” Karns added.Fighting IS-linked militantsThe announcement of the death of Droukdel comes almost six months after former colonial power France and regional states combined their military forces under one command structure to focus on fighting IS-linked militants in the border regions of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, according to a Reuters report.Droukdel, among North Africa’s most experienced militants, took part in an Islamist militant takeover of northern Mali. In 2013, a French military intervention pushed them back and scattered the fighters across the Sahel region.Droukdel was believed to be hiding in the mountains of northern Algeria, according to a Reuters report. Al-Qaida North Africa was the dominant jihadist force in the region, staging several high-profile deadly attacks until 2013, when it fractured as many militants flocked to the more extremist IS as it seized territory in Iraq, Syria and Libya, according to the news service.It remained active in North Africa’s largely desert and often scarcely governed Sahel region. In Mali, it focused its activities to the north in Libya and Tunisia. As IS waned, it sought to lure new talent from among IS veterans.Parly said that French forces, which number about 5,100 in the region, had also on May 19 captured Mohamed el Mrabat, a fighter she identified as a veteran militant in the region and a member of IS in the Greater Sahara, a Reuters report said.”Our forces, in cooperation with their local partners … will continue to track these (people) down without respite,” Parly said, according to Reuters.Militants strengthen footholdCritics in the region have increasingly scorned Paris for failing to restore stability. Anti-French sentiment has grown as militants have strengthened their foothold, making large swathes of territory ungovernable and stoking ethnic violence.Parly told Reuters that earlier this week about 100 special forces from other European countries would be deployed to the region to support French and regional troops.Both France and the United States have been calling on other European countries to contribute more to the fight against terror groups in Africa, especially as the U.S. military looks to move forces to counter threats posed by powers like Russia and China.Members of the global coalition to defeat IS have also expressed a desire to focus additional efforts in Africa, but planning has been delayed due to the global coronavirus pandemic.In a communique issued following a virtual meeting Thursday, coalition members promised to move ahead with those efforts, with a focus on “capacity building … upon the request and prior consent of the countries concerned and be coordinated with existing efforts and initiatives.”French officials, however, have urged the U.S. to keep some forces in Africa, stressing that some U.S. capabilities, especially in the areas of intelligence and surveillance, cannot be replaced.VOA’s Jeff Seldin contributed to this report. Some information for this report also came from Reuters.   
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France said Friday that its military forces had killed al-Qaida’s North Africa chief, Abdelmalek Droukdel, a key Islamist fighter whom its forces had been hunting for more than seven years, during an operation in Mali.”On June 3, French army forces, with the support of their local partners, killed the emir of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, Abdelmalek Droukdel, and several of his closest collaborators, during an operation in northern Mali,” French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly wrote on Twitter.The announcement of the death of Droukdel came almost six months after former colonial power France and regional states combined their military forces under one command structure to focus on fighting Islamic State-linked militants in the border regions of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.Droukdel was among North Africa’s most experienced militants. He took part in an Islamist militant takeover of northern Mali before a French military intervention in 2013 drove them back and scattered fighters across the Sahel region.Once a dominant forceDroukdel was believed to be hiding in the mountains of northern Algeria. Al-Qaida North Africa was the dominant jihadist force in the region until 2013, when it fractured as many militants flocked to the more extremist Islamic State.It remained active in North Africa’s largely desert and often scarcely governed Sahel region. In Mali, it focused its activities to the north in Libya and Tunisia. As Islamic State waned, it has sought to lure new talent from among IS veterans.Parly said that French forces, which number about 5,100 in the region, had also on May 19 captured Mohamed el Mrabat, a fighter she identified as a veteran militant in the region and member of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara.”Our forces, in cooperation with their local partners… will continue to track these [people] down without respite,” Parly said.Critics in the region have increasingly scorned Paris for failing to restore stability. Anti-French sentiment has grown as militants have strengthened their foothold, making large swaths of territory ungovernable and stoking ethnic violence.Parly said earlier this week that about 100 special forces from other European countries would be deployed to the region to support French and regional troops.
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The Trump administration’s campaign to keep Chinese tech giant Huawei out of its allies’ 5G networks appears to be gaining ground in Britain.  Last year the British government concluded that although Huawei posed a “significantly increased risk” to British communications, the government decided to ban Huawei only from the country’s so-called network “core,” but otherwise allow it to attain up to 35% of Britain’s  5G network market.  That position changed after months of lobbying by U.S. officials, when British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said last month that the country was examining possibilities for completely excluding Huawei from its 5G network by 2023.  Now, British officials are trying to Mobile network phone masts are visible in front of St Paul’s Cathedral in the City of London, Jan. 28, 2020.Experts say Britain’s change of attitude is partly due to concerns that refusing to cooperate with the U.S. on Huawei will pose a threat to intelligence sharing and joint defense capabilities with its major ally.  Others caution it’s unlikely that the new alliance will become a reality since telecom operators in European countries are unwilling to “rip and replace” Huawei components from their communications systems because of the high cost, and are lobbying their own governments to make sure Huawei remains an approved vendor.’D10′ club of democratic partners The countries in the group are the G7 countries — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the U.S. — plus Australia, South Korea and India. The proposal includes providing financial support to tech companies within the alliance.Justin Sherman, a nonresident fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Cyber Statecraft Initiative, said that Huawei’s major competitors, Finland’s Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson, are both unable to attract enough capital to compete with Huawei’s massive 5G network infrastructure division, which gets financial support from the Chinese government.  “So there are lots of fronts on which this democratic coalition could presumably work, including more robust government investment in 5G research and development projects domestically, greater advocacy for open 5G standards in international bodies to contest the proprietary standards that Huawei continues to advance, or even the development of some kind of industrial policy to help promote 5G innovation,” Sherman  told VOA Mandarin.   FILE – Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., speaks during a Senate Intelligence Committee nomination hearing for Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 5, 2020.U.S. Senator Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican who is one of Huawei’s leading critics in Washington, warned the British Parliament on Tuesday that China was trying to use the telecom equipment maker “to drive a high-tech wedge between us.”  He added that the U.S., Britain and other allies could team up to develop their own superior 5G technologies. Meanwhile, the White House launched a major review of Chinese penetration of Huawei’s 5G Product Line President, Yang Chaobin, speaks during a 5G event in London, on Feb. 20, 2020.Lee-Makiyama added that telecom operators in Europe are owned by financial institutions, pension funds or governments, which means they are not as interested in investing in new networks or reinvesting in high-end networks.  “5G for them is just a cost,” he said.   He also pointed out that compared to the U.S. and Asian countries, the demand of European telecom users is not as high. “Consumers are not demanding higher speed. Shareholders prefer to see dividends rather than investments in the networks,” said Lee-Makiyama. “So, all in all, they are big fans of Chinese suppliers and they are lobbying very hard against their governments to make sure that Huawei continues to be allowed in the European markets.” Chuanqi Xu and Lin Yang contributed to this report.
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All too many have been, for 76 years since that fateful June 6 on France’s Normandy beaches, when allied troops in 1944 turned the course of World War II and went on to defeat fascism in Europe in one of the most remarkable feats in military history.Forgotten they will never be. Revered, yes. But Saturday’s anniversary will be one of the loneliest remembrances ever, as the coronavirus pandemic is keeping almost everyone away — from government leaders to frail veterans who might not get another chance for a final farewell to their unlucky comrades.  Rain and wind are also forecast, after weeks of warm, sunny weather.”The sadness is almost too much, because there is no one,” said local guide Adeline James. “Plus you have their stories. The history is sad and it’s even more overwhelming now between the weather, the (virus) situation and, and, and.”The locals in this northwestern part of France have come out year after year to show their gratitude for the soldiers from the United States, Britain, Canada and other countries who liberated them from Adolf Hitler’s Nazi forces.Despite the lack of international crowds, David Pottier still went out to raise American flags in the Calvados village of Mosles, population 356, which was liberated by allied troops the day after the landing on five Normandy beachheads.  In a forlorn scene, a gardener tended to the parched grass around the small monument for the war dead, while Pottier, the local mayor, was getting the French tricolor to flutter next to the Stars and Stripes.  “We have to recognize that they came to die in a foreign land,” Pottier said. “We miss the GIs,” he said of the U.S. soldiers.  The pandemic has wreaked havoc across the world, infecting 6.6 million people, killing over 391,000 and devastating economies. It poses a particular threat to the elderly  — like the surviving D-Day veterans who are in their late nineties or older.  It has also affected the younger generations who turn out every year to mark the occasion. Most have been barred from traveling to the windswept coasts of Normandy.  Some 160,000 soldiers made the perilous crossing from England that day in atrocious conditions, storming dunes which they knew were heavily defended by German troops determined to hold their positions.  Somehow, they succeeded. Yet they left a trail of thousands of casualties who have been mourned for generations since.  Last year stood out, with U.S. President Donald Trump joining his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron at the American cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach. A smattering of veterans were honored with the highest accolades. All across the beaches of Normandy tens of thousands came from across the globe to pay their respects to the dead and laud the surviving soldiers.  The acrid smell of wartime-era jeep exhaust fumes and the rumble of old tanks filled the air as parades of vintages vehicles went from village to village. The tiny roads between the dunes, hedges and apple orchards were clogged for hours, if not days.Heading into the D-Day remembrance weekend this year, only the salty brine coming off the ocean on Omaha Beach hits the nostrils, the shrieks of seagulls pierce the ears and a sense of desolation hangs across the region’s country roads.  “Last year this place was full with jeeps, trucks, people dressed up as soldiers,” said Eric Angely, who sat on a seawall, dressed in a World War II uniform after taking his restored U.S. Army jeep out for a ride.  “This year, there is nothing. It’s just me now, my dog and my jeep,” the local Frenchman said.Three quarters of a century and the horrific wartime slaughter of D-Day help put things in perspective. Someday the COVID-19 pandemic, too, will pass, and people will turn out to remember both events that shook the world.”We don’t have a short memory around here,” Pottier said with a wistful smile. 
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Officials in Norway say eight structures were swept into the sea by a landslide near the Norwegian Arctic town of Alta.A local resident, Jan Egil Bakkedal, captured the event on video Wednesday in the village of Kraakneset. He told the Associated Press he ran for his life when he realized what was happening. Among houses that were lost was his own.Police estimate the landslide was between 650 meters and 800 meters wide and up to 40 meters high. Officials did not know what caused the slide.Several minor landslides followed, and nearby houses were temporarily evacuated as a precaution.No injuries were reported. A dog that was washed into the sea was able to swim back to land. 
 
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Madeleine McCann’s family is hoping for closure in the case after a key suspect was identified in Germany and as authorities there say they believe the missing British girl is dead.
McCann was 3 at the time of her disappearance while she was on vacation with her family in Portugal in 2007.
U.K. and German authorities haven’t named the suspect but said he is 43 and was in and around the Praia da Luz resort area on the Algarve coast at the time Madeleine McCann disappeared on May 3, 2007. Though numerous suspects have come to light in the case previously, family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said that it seems as if there is something different this time.
“In more than 13 years of working with the family I can’t recall the police being so specific about an individual,” Mitchell told Sky News. “He is not being named and the police are quite adamant they are not going to do that, certainly not yet, but they want very specific details around his movement in 2007, even down to phone calls he received the night before Madeleine went missing and the fact he changed the registration of his car the day after.”
Hans Christian Wolters, a prosecutor in Braunschweig, Germany, told reporters investigators are operating on the assumption that McCann is dead.  
“In connection with the disappearance of the then 3-year-old British girl Madeleine Beth McCann on the May 3, 2007 from an apartment complex in Praia da Luz in Portugal, Braunschweig prosecutors are investigating a 43-year-old German citizen on suspicion of murder,” he told reporters. “You can infer from that we assume the girl is dead.”
The long-running case of McCann, who vanished shortly before her fourth birthday, has mesmerized Britain for years. Her parents say Madeleine disappeared after they had left her and her twin siblings asleep in their holiday complex while they had dinner with friends at a nearby restaurant.  
More than 600 people had been identified as being potentially significant, but officers were tipped off about the German suspect following a 2017 appeal, 10 years after the girl went missing.  
Police said the suspect, described as white with short, blond hair and a slim build, was linked to a camper van seen in the Algarve in 2007 and was believed to be in the resort area in the days before and after May 3 that year.  
Christian Hoppe of Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office told German public broadcaster ZDF that the suspect, a German citizen, is currently imprisoned in Germany for a sexual crime. He spent numerous years in Portugal and has two previous convictions for “sexual contact with girls.”
Hoppe said German police aren’t ruling out a sexual motive. They said whoever abducted the girl may have broken into the holiday apartment and then spontaneously committed the kidnapping.
The suspect is being investigated on suspicion of murder by prosecutors in the German city of Braunschweig, where he was last registered before moving abroad.
Wolters would not give any other details of the suspect’s identity so as not to jeopardize the ongoing investigation.
Police from Britain, Germany and Portugal launched a new joint appeal for information in the case Wednesday. They asked for anyone to come forward if they had seen two vehicles linked to the suspect — a Volkswagen camper van and a Jaguar. They also sought information on two Portuguese phone numbers, including one believed to have been used by the suspect on the day of Madeleine’s disappearance.  
The family, as ever, as searching for answers.  
“They do remain hopeful that she could still be found alive,” Mitchell said. “They’ve never given up on that hope, nor will they, until they are presented with any incontrovertible evidence to the contrary. But they say that despite all that, whatever the outcome of this particular line of enquiry might be, they need to know as they need to find peace.”
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British Prime Minister Prime Minister Boris Johnson Thursday opened the Global Vaccine Summit, a virtual gathering of more that 50 countries, to raise funds for the U.N.-backed public-private health alliance known as GAVI, with the goal of ensuring vaccines are available to all.The summit hopes to raise more than $7.5 billion for the development and equitable world-wide distribution of COVID-19 and other vaccines.In his remarks from London, Johnson pledged Britain will contribute just over $2 billion to the GAVI vaccine alliance over the next five years.  Along with creation of a COVID-19 vaccine, Johnson also called on nations to replenish funding for vaccines that already exist.In a recorded video message, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for global solidarity to ensure every person everywhere has access to any COVID-19 vaccine that is produced, and for the network that is used to share that vaccine be used to deliver a range of basic health services.Using data provided by governments around the world, Johns Hopkins University reports the COVID-19 pandemic has killed more than 386,000 worldwide and crippled economies. Restrictions imposed to prevent the virus from spreading have further hampered efforts to deliver regular vaccinations and other health services around the world.
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