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☆ Zhang Yongzhen: Chinese virologist shared crucial Covid-19 data. Then his research hit hurdles
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | Yong Xiong | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The ordeal is just the latest hindrance to Zhang’s research since 2020, according to a colleague who has been in contact with the Chinese scientist in recent years. The “institute always respects … and supports scientific researchers and students in carrying out normal research work,” the statement said. The earlier post by Zhang’s students said the two days originally allocated by the center for them to move their scientific work was insufficient. Following the release of the data, Zhang’s lab had limitations placed on it, which barred it from isolating the Covid virus, Holmes said. That included imposing restrictions by April 2020 on the publication of academic research on the origins of the novel coronavirus.

Persons: Zhang Yongzhen’s, Zhang, ”, hadn’t, Hector Retamal, Edward Holmes, Holmes, ” Holmes, “, He’s, Zhang Yongzhen, ” Zhang, “ He’s, It’s, virologist Organizations: Hong Kong CNN —, Shanghai, Health, Weibo, Zhang’s, Chinese Center for Disease Control, CNN, Fudan University, Health Clinical, Getty, World Health Organization, Nature, University, Sydney, CDC, China’s National Health Commission, Oxford University Press, Shanghai Public Health Center, Natural Science Foundation of China Locations: China, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Wuhan, AFP, Beijing

CNN —Eight Chinese migrants have been found dead on the coast of southern Mexico, authorities said, after their boat capsized along a popular but perilous route for illegally entering the United States. One Chinese man survived the trip, the statement said. The prosecutor’s office said it was working with federal agencies to investigate the incident and the Chinese embassy in Mexico to identify the bodies. The number of Chinese migrants illegally entering the US from Mexico has skyrocketed in recent years. The influx of Chinese migrants spotlights the urgency many now feel to leave their homeland, even amid what Chinese leader Xi Jinping has claimed is a “national rejuvenation.”Many Chinese who left the country point to a struggle to survive.

Persons: San Francisco del, Iris Wang, Wang, “, ”, Xi Jinping, –, Communist Party’s, China’s, Xi Organizations: CNN, Communist Locations: Mexico, United States, San Francisco, San Francisco del Mar, Oaxaca, Mexican, Tapachula, Chiapas, Guatemala, Venezuela, China

☆ Teacher Li: A Chinese dissident in Europe is enraging Beijing. Now police are coming for his social media followers
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Nectar Gan | Yong Xiong | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

And now, Chinese authorities appear to be going after his followers in China. Li Ying spends most of his days in front of the computer running his X account. Li’s warnings sent shock waves through the small but influential Chinese X sphere. On X, Li Ying’s account provided a window into the outpouring of grief and disaffection. “The Chinese authorities are fearful of young people like Teacher Li, seeing him as a threat to its rule,” Wang said.

Persons: Lee, Xi Jinping, –, Li, ”, ” Lee, Li Ying, Li reposts, Elon Musk, Covid lockdowns, ” Li, “, Yaqiu Wang, ‘, ’ ”, Li Keqiang, Shen Xiang, ramped, Li Keqiang’s, Xi, it’s, it’ll, ” Wang, Wang Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Twitter, US, Facebook, Elon, Ministry of Public Security, CNN, YouTube, Future Publishing, Getty, Freedom Locations: China, Hong Kong, Beijing, Italy, Washington, Anhui province, “

CNN —The home of a Canadian Sikh activist in Brampton, Ontario, was hit by gunfire on Monday, months after the assassination of another activist sent India-Canada relations into a spiral. “It appears that only one bullet hole was found but that is subject to change,” Peel Regional Police wrote in a statement. The bullet hole in Gosal's home in Brampton, Ontario. The Canadian citizen was gunned down by masked men last June outside a Sikh temple in British Colombia. Weeks later, the United States accused an Indian government official of being involved in a conspiracy to kill another Sikh separatist, American citizen Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, on US soil.

Persons: Inderjit Singh, Gosal, Singh, Justin Trudeau, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Weeks, Gurpatwant Singh, Pannun, Nikhil Gupta, Gupta, Nijjar, “ Organizations: CNN, Justice, Peel Regional Police, Indian Consulate Toronto, Canadian, Indian, Global Affairs Canada Locations: Brampton , Ontario, India, Canada, India’s Punjab, British Colombia, United States, Ontario, Punjab

☆ Apple is offering rare iPhone discounts in China
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Apple is offering temporary discounts on its iPhones and other products in China, in an extremely rare move for Apple that comes as competition within Asia’s smartphone market grows more intense. Although third-party sellers at times discount Apple products, Apple itself very rarely offers deals or sales, part of its effort to maintain a premium brand image – something that has been particularly important as Apple seeks to attract high-end buyers in China. The new discounts on the iPhone in China are raising fresh questions about how demand for Apple products is faring recently in the world’s second-largest economy. China has long been a key market for the iPhone maker, with roughly one-fifth of Apple’s overall sales last year coming from China. Last week, Apple lost its status as the stock market’s most valuable company, taking a back seat to Microsoft.

Persons: Yong Xiong Organizations: New, New York CNN, Apple, Mac, Huawei, Wall Street Journal, Research, Jefferies Research, Reuters, Microsoft Locations: New York, China

CNN —US federal prosecutors have charged an Indian national in an alleged murder-for-hire plot to try to assassinate a Sikh political activist in New York City, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was murdered in Canada in June, and the Canadian government said it had credible information linking India to the murder. People stomp on an Indian flag and a cutout of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi during a Sikh rally outside the Indian consulate in Toronto to raise awareness for the Indian government's alleged involvement in the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia on September 25, 2023. Cole Burston/AFP/Getty ImagesNijjar and Pannun were associates, US prosecutors say, as they were both leaders of the Sikh separatist movement. The Indian official gave Gupta Pannun’s home address, phone numbers and details on his daily activities, prosecutors allege.

Persons: Nikhil Gupta, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, Gupta, “, ” Pannun, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Narendra Modi, Cole Burston, Pannun, Nijjar, Nijjar “, – Organizations: CNN, Justice, Indian, Getty Locations: New York City, New York, India, Czech Republic, Canada, Toronto, British Columbia, AFP

☆ China pandas: Xi Jinping hints he could send new pandas to US as ‘envoys of friendship’
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Yong Xiong | Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Their departure leaves Zoo Atlanta as the only other US zoo to feature pandas from China. “Recently, the three pandas at Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington D.C. have returned to China. The Chinese leader did not offer additional details on where any future Chinese pandas might be sent, but suggested California would be the most likely destination. The San Diego Zoo returned its last two pandas to China in 2019, after the loan agreement concluded. It’s also the Chinese leader’s first trip to the US in more than six years.

Persons: Xi Jinping, ” Xi, “, Xi, Joe Biden, Richard Nixon’s, Tian Tian, Mei Xiang, Xiao Qi Ji –, It’s, Biden Organizations: CNN, San Diego Zoo, Beijing –, Smithsonian National Zoo, Smithsonian National, Zoo, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Locations: China, United States, San Francisco, Beijing, Europe, Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, Qatar, Washington ,, Zoo Atlanta, Washington, California, Bali , Indonesia

The pandas’ departure from the National Zoo leaves Zoo Atlanta as the only other US zoo to feature pandas from China, and not for much longer. First lady Pat Nixon welcomes China's giant pandas on April 20, 1972, at Washington's National Zoo. They have since become the parents of seven giant panda cubs born at Zoo Atlanta, according to the zoo. Staff at the National Zoo say they’re hopeful China might one day send over more giant pandas. Plans for the exhibit, with a welcome sign announcing the “Giant Pandas of Chengdu” and a panda-themed gift shop, aren’t clear.

Persons: Tian Tian, Mei Xiang, Xiao Qi Ji, Nixon, Mao Zedong, Richard Nixon, ”, Mao Ning, Richard Nixon’s, Mao Zedong’s, Pat Nixon, “, Hsing, YaYa, Xin Xin, David Culver, Fernando Gual Sill, CNN Xin Xin –, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Yang Yang, Lun Lun, Steve Schaefer, –, Bob Lee, Jane Mahalik, “ Pat Nixon, ” Mahalik, Jill Biden, Yong Xiong, Melissa Gray Organizations: CNN, Smithsonian National Zoo, ” Zoo, National Zoo, Zoo, AP China, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Washington, of Public Service, Memphis Zoo, Atlanta, Chapultepec Zoo, Pandas, Zoo Atlanta, Getty, Scotland, Edinburgh Zoo, Adelaide Zoo, Chengdu Research Base, Staff, National Locations: Washington ,, China, what’s, Zoo Atlanta, Beijing, United States, City of Peking, Washington, Atlanta, Russia, Mexico City, Chapultepec, Mexico, “, China’s, Moscow, Qatar, AFP, America, Zoo, Chengdu, New York, Los Angeles

A woman dressed up as a starving medical student. One woman dressed up as a medical student, holding a begging bowl in her hands. A woman dressed up as a liberal arts student hungry for egg fried rice. Greg Baker/Pool/ReutersTo address these challenges, President Xi Jinping hosted a key financial policy meeting this week to reiterate the need to resolve financial risks in the economy. “Hidden economic and financial risks are still widespread,” the readout said.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN —, ”, Zhou, Xiao Pan, Yan Ziqi, “, Xi Jinping, Greg Baker, Xi Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, CNN, Global, Stock, Huaan Securities, Service, National People's, of, People, Reuters, Communist Party, Ministry of State Security Locations: China, Hong Kong, China’s, Shanghai, Weibo, Douyin, “, Beijing

☆ Revisiting a key video used to assess the Gaza hospital blast
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Yong Xiong | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN revisited the footage broadcast live by Al Jazeera on the night of the explosion to better understand what has been considered a key piece of evidence. Still, no visual evidence has surfaced showing a rocket hitting the hospital, and CNN cannot exclude other possibilities. CNN could not independently assess whether what is visible in the video is in fact an Iron Dome interceptor missile. The video appears to show the volley emanating from a location southwest of Al-Ahli Hospital, outside of Gaza City. CNN cannot independently confirm whether a rocket fired from southwestern Gaza was responsible for the blast.

Persons: Al Jazeera, Al, Peter Lerner, ”, Israel, Bat Yam, Nahal Oz, Markus Schiller, Tamir, “ Tamir, Schiller, Jonathan Conricus, Yam –, Israel “, Joe Biden, “, – Organizations: CNN, Ahli Baptist Hospital, Al, Twitter, The New York Times, Washington Post, Israel Defense Forces, National Intelligence, U.S . Intelligence Community, Hospital, Palestinian, NATO, European Union, Israel’s, Gaza, Israel, National Security Council Locations: Israel, United States, Ahli, Gaza, Al Jazeera, Al, Gaza City, Tel Aviv, Netivot, Nahal, Germany, Gaza . Palestinian

Two people who know Fu told CNN that they heard from common friends she had a child through surrogacy in the US, though they did not know who the father was. Fu stopped posting on her WeChat social media account in May after returning to China from the US in April, two sources close to Fu told CNN. Fu Xiaotian, 40, was the host of a flagship talk show on Hong Kong-based Chinese broadcaster Phoenix TV. Following Qin’s disappearance, Chinese social media users have scrutinized Fu’s posts on Weibo, a popular microblogging site, where she boasts more than a million followers. She last posted on Wechat, another Chinese social media app, on May 21, the two people who know Fu told CNN.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN — China’s, Qin Gang, Fu Xiaotian, Qin, Fu, Xi Jinping, ”, Fu –, –, Qin’s, “, ” Yun Sun, Sun, That’s, Xiaotian, Zikuan Chen, Fu reminisced, Er, ’ ” Fu Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Financial Times, Phoenix, CNN, China’s Foreign, ” CNN, China’s, Information Office, Phoenix TV, Wall Street Journal, Communist Party, Stimson, World, Cambridge University, Star, Churchill College, Gulfstream G650, Fu, Federal Aviation Administration, Gulfstream, Anchorage International, Washington DC, Qin Locations: Hong Kong, United States, Beijing, China, Washington, London, Phoenix TV’s London, Fu, Weibo, California, Chongqing, Orange County , California, Italy, alma, Los Angeles, Anchorage, Alaska, Miami

CNN —Russia and China will continue “well-coordinated work” at the UN General Assembly this week, as well as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit this fall, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov predicted on Monday, during a visit from China’s top diplomat Wang Yi in Moscow. “I am confident that our well-coordinated work will continue during these forums,” he added. However, cooperation between Beijing and Moscow is not directed against other countries, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi emphasized during his Moscow trip. “China and Russia pursue independent foreign policies. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said in May that he expected trade with China would top $200 billion this year.

Persons: Sergey Lavrov, Wang Yi, ”, Lavrov, Wang, “, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, ” Wang, Mikhail Mishustin Organizations: CNN, UN, Assembly, Economic Cooperation, Reuters, Moscow, Russian Locations: Russia, China, Asia, Russian, China’s, Moscow, United States, Ukraine, Beijing

Multiple experts identified the presence of malware on the Pinduoduo app that exploited vulnerabilities in Android operating systems. Evidence of sophisticated malware in the Pinduoduo app comes amid intense scrutiny of Chinese-developed apps like TikTok over concerns about data security. Pinduoduo has previously rejected “the speculation and accusation that Pinduoduo app is malicious.”CNN has contacted PDD multiple times over email and phone for comment, but has not received a response. Google Play is not available in China, and Android users in the country download their apps from local stores. Engineers also found their access to big data, data sheets and the log system revoked, the source said.

Hong Kong CNN —Google has suspended Pinduoduo, a popular Chinese budget shopping app, from its Play Store after finding malware in versions of the app. In a Tuesday statement, Google said versions of the app that are not in the Play Store have been found to contain malware. “We have suspended the Play version of the app for security concerns while we continue our investigation,” a Google spokesperson said. “Google Play Protect enforcement has been set to block installation attempts of these identified malicious apps. Users that have malicious versions of the app downloaded to their devices are warned and prompted to uninstall the app,” the spokesperson said.

CNN —Chinese billionaire Jack Ma will no longer control Ant Group after the fintech giant’s shareholders agreed to reshape its shareholding structure, according to a statement released by the company on Saturday. After the adjustment, Ma’s voting rights will fall to 6.2%, according to the statement and CNN calculations. Before the restructure, Ma held 50.52% of voting rights at Ant via Hangzhou Yunbo and two other entities, according to its IPO prospectus filed with stock exchanges in 2020. As part of the company’s restructuring, Ant applied for an expansion of its registered capital from $1.2 billion to $2.7 billion. Ant Group is a fintech affiliate of Alibaba, both of which were founded by Ma.

☆ Premarket stocks: Wall Street's dirty secret: It's terrible at forecasting stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

What’s happening: Last year, Goldman Sachs analysts predicted that the S&P 500 would close out 2022 at 5,100 points. With those caveats, let’s get to Wall Street’s predictionsThe numbers: Forecasts for where the S&P 500 will finish 2023 vary greatly. Analysts overestimated the final value (that is, the final value finished below the estimate) in 13 of the 20 years and underestimated the final value (the final value finished above the estimate) in the other 7 years. They’re on track to have overestimated the performance of the S&P 500 in 2022 by nearly 40%. During this period, the S&P 500 has historically gained 1.3% on average, according to data from LPL Financial going back to 1950.

The country will also scrap all other restrictive Covid measures for travelers, including quarantines for positive patients and contact tracing. China downgraded Covid management to a less-strict “Class B disease,” in the same category as less-severe diseases, such as Dengue fever. The existing quarantine policy for international arrivals to China was first launched in 2020 and modified over the course of the past several years. Since the world’s second largest economy drastically eased its Covid restrictions, there has been no clear data on the extent of the virus’ spread on the national level. China’s current focus is to prepare sufficient medical resources, according to the NHC statement.

New Delhi CNN —Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Dhaka on Saturday calling for the dissolution of parliament to make way for new elections, and demand the resignation of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Saturday’s protest comes amid a flurry of demonstrations in Bangladesh calling on Hasina to step down and demanding new elections. The Bangladesh Election Commission has not announced a date for the next general election, which is due by the end of 2023. Supporters of Bangladesh's opposition party protest against the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on December 10, 2022. “Concerned governments should publicly call on the prime minister to allow Bangladeshis to freely engage in peaceful political activities,” she said.

“I haven’t seen sunlight in what seems like a long time,” Li told CNN, a week after the protests broke out. In recent years, Beijing has extended its crackdown on dissent to the foreign platform, detaining and jailing Chinese Twitter users who criticized the government. TwitterLi received thousands of submissions a day – and up to dozens per second at the height of the protests. Journalists, observers and activists monitored his feed closely, and some of his posts were aired on televisions across the world. And then they went to our house at midnight to harass my parents,” Li said.

(CNN) Anger and criticism over China's unrelenting zero-Covid policy has erupted after a bus transporting residents to a coronavirus quarantine facility crashed on Sunday, killing 27 people. It is unclear why a quarantine bus would take people on winding mountain roads after midnight. Other photos and videos show the bus being towed by a truck, its top crushed, and a hazmat suited worker spraying disinfectant on it. While CNN cannot independently verify the photos and videos, the bus license plate in the images matches the plate number reported by authorities. Survivors of the crash are now receiving treatment in hospital, according to authorities.

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