Usa: Latest News

COLOMBO (News 1st) – ‘Sri Lanka Leopard Dynasty’ by Thivanka Rukshan Perera will become the first ever Sri Lanka documentary to be aired on National Geographic – WILD.News 1st's Senitha Senanayake reports, that ‘Sri Lanka Leopard Dynasty’ produced by ‘Thivanka Rukshan Perera and Aegle Creations PVT Ltd – Sri Lanka’ will air on National Geographic – WILD from November 13th to 30th this year. It will initially make its premiere on German Television (on November 13th, 2022) thereafter there will be a global release on Nat Geo WILD, where it will be dubbed and shown in different languages. The director, writer and editor of the film – ‘Thivanka Rukshan Perera’ – is an alumni of Academy of Art University in San Francisco, USA and a BFA (Hon) – in Motion Picture and Television.According to Thivanka, this documentary was produced with much difficulty, as it faced numerous obstacles including the COVID pandemic that restricted travel for many months.However, “Sri Lanka – Leopard Dynasty” was successfully completed by 2021 and acquired by National Geographic the following year. Currently, it is being dubbed to be shown in different languages worldwide later this year.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Department in the USA, Robert Kaproth is in Sri Lanka. He is here to meet with government & economic leaders to discuss the way forward on economic recovery for Sri Lanka, tweeted the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka.Robert Kaproth met with the USA Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung on Tuesday (25).

The COVID-19 pandemic claimed thousands of Sri Lankan lives, and News 1st revealed questionable transactions that took place during the height of the pandemic.Approximately 7 Million doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine are to expire on Monday, 31st of October 2022.The Epidemiology Unit of the Ministry of Health repeatedly requested the people of Sri Lanka to obtain the vaccine doses before delay.Pfizer Inc expects to roughly quadruple the price of its COVID-19 vaccine to about $110 to $130 per dose after the United States government's current purchase program expires.Approximately 7 Million doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine are to expire, and if it does the value of those vaccines as per the current market rate would be astronomical.While vaccine stocks are about to expire leading to another colossal waste, Sri Lanka also lost a large sum of money when it delayed placing orders for the vaccine.In February 2020, Sri Lanka recorded its first even COVID-19 infection and it didn't take long for the coronavirus to spread across the country.What did Sri Lanka do when other countries devoted their resources to developing a vaccine?Sri Lankan MPs and Minister dropped pots into rivers, and the so-called miracle tonic Dhammika Paniya was promoted widely – while there was absolutely no interest in procuring the vaccines.Experts in the field of medicine repeatedly called for the government to procure vaccines, however as Sri Lankan authorities opted to myth over science, the procurement of much-needed vaccines was delayed.On the 30th of December 2020, the UK granted approval for the emergency use of the AstraZeneca vaccine prompting many other countries to place immediate orders for the vaccines.As it was also produced by the

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Hindus across the World Celebrate the Deepavali Festival today (24).Diwali (also called Divali or Deepavali) is a “festival of lights” that celebrates the triumph of light over dark and good over evil, and the blessings of victory, freedom, and enlightenment. The name comes from Sanksrit dipavali, meaning “row of lights.” On the night of Diwali, celebrants light dozens of candles and clay lamps (called diyas), placing them throughout their homes and in the streets to light up the dark night. In most of India, Diwali consists of a five-day celebration that peaks on the third day with the main celebration of Diwali. In other places where Diwali occurs, usually only the main day is celebrated.Diwali is primarily celebrated by followers of the Hindu, Sikh, and Jain faiths.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The Offshore Patrol Vessel P 627 of Sri Lanka Navy, which set sail for her home-bound journey from Seattle, United States on 03rd September 2022, called at the Port of Changi in Singapore on 22nd October 2022. The High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Singapore, Sashikala Premawardhane was also present on this occasion to welcome the ship.After having called at the Port of Manila in the Philippines, P 627 began her home-bound journey from there on 16th October. Having covered a passage of about 1393 nautical miles (2580 km) she arrived in Singapore on 22nd October 2022 for replenishment and services.When the ship arrived at the Port of Changi, the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Singapore, Sashikala Premawardhane was also present to welcome the ship.

US President Joe Biden speaks at a Labor Day event with United Steelworkers of America Local Union 2227 in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania on September 5, 2022. - Biden is celebrating Labor Day by delivering remarks on the dignity of American workers in P PHILADELPHIA - As Democrats fight to keep control of the Senate, President Joe Biden has been practically absent from midterm election campaigning in pivotal states such as Georgia, Nevada and Ohio.But he keeps coming back to Pennsylvania, where he spent his childhood and his low approval ratings won't keep him away.

A mentally healthy workplace includes growth opportunities, work-life balance and community, according to America’s doctor The U.S.

A rapidly spreading Covid strain has been dubbed the Nightmare Variant after it was found to double infections in a matter of days.

pregnancy-related deaths last year, according to a government report released on Wednesday. It says that it is a crisis that has disproportionately claimed Black and Hispanic women as victims. The report lays out trends across the country for expectant mothers and their newborn babies, the news agency AP reported.

HONOLULU – The Hawai‘i Department of Health (DOH) announces the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 booster by Novavax and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and DOH are allowing use of the COVID-19 booster by Novavax.Novavax monovalent COVID-19 boosters are recommended for adults 18 and older for whom a bivalent booster by Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna is not clinically appropriate and adults who would otherwise not get a COVID-19 booster.Adults who completed their primary series of Novavax, Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines at least six months ago can receive a Novavax booster if they have not already received a different booster by another manufacturer.“We encourage people to get the new bivalent boosters from Pfizer or Moderna because those are the only boosters specially designed to protect against Omicron subvariants.

WASHINGTON - COVID-19 drove a dramatic increase in the number of women who died from pregnancy or childbirth complications in the U.S. last year, a crisis that has disproportionately claimed Black and Hispanic women as victims, according to a government report released Wednesday.The report lays out grim trends across the country for expectant mothers and their newborn babies.It finds that pregnancy-related deaths have spiked nearly 80% since 2018, with COVID-19 being a factor in a quarter of the 1,178 deaths reported last year.

SCRANTON - Federal prosecutors have accused a Pennsylvania prison escapee of sending a letter with threats to kill President Biden and the chairman of the Jan. 6 committee, among others, and containing a white powder with an allusion to anthrax.Robert Maverick Vargo, 25, of Berwick is charged with making threats against the president and a federal official and with interstate communications with a threat.The U.S. attorney's office in Scranton said the Washington office of U.S.

WASHINGTON - U.S. regulators on Wednesday authorized a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine made by Novavax.The Food and Drug Administration said the new booster option is for people 18 and older who can’t get the updated omicron-targeting Pfizer or Moderna boosters for medical or accessibility reasons -- or who otherwise would not receive a COVID-19 booster shot at all.The FDA specified the additional Novavax shot was to be used as a first booster -- not for people who've already had one or more booster doses already — at least six months after completing their primary shots.FILE - In this photo illustration a COVID-19 vaccine is seen with the Novavax logo in the background.

Overall COVID-19 cases declined again last week, down 6% compared to the week before, but some Western Asian nations such as Singapore are experiencing a steady surge in cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) said today in its latest update on the pandemic.

Two new studies uncover the profound impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global life expectancy (LE), one showing substantial and sustained LE losses in the United States and Eastern Europe, and the other finding a link between LE at 60 years of age before the pandemic and excess deaths amid COVID-19 only in countries with older populations.

return to work, and companies stand ready to hire them, according to the AARP.AARP CEO Jo Ann Jenkins said the reasons for early retirement varied in 2020: some people retired to avoid COVID-19 exposure, while others were laid off because of massive job cuts. Others may have retired early because the pandemic was a reminder of our own mortality — leaving the workforce was a way to "seize the day," financial planner Liz Weston said in 2021.More than two years later, many of those early retirees "are bored to death and looking to do something that has meaning and purpose," Jenkins said at a recent event hosted by the social impact nonprofit Concordia.The pace of retirements among baby boomers, those born from 1946 to 1964, accelerated during the pandemic, a Pew Research Center analysis of monthly labor force data found.

Among a group of vaccinated college athletes who tested positive for COVID-19 and underwent rapid antigen testing 7 days later, 27% were still positive—a proportion that climbed to 35% in symptomatic athletes and 40% in those infected with the Omicron BA.2 subvariant.The findings, published yesterday in JAMA Network Open, suggest that

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu has assured to support Sri Lanka during this difficult period. He is currently on an official visit to Sri Lanka, and met with President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Wednesday (19). While appreciating the President’s efforts in rebuilding Sri Lanka’s economy he said that President Ranil Wickremesinghe is the right person to get the country out of the present crisis and assured him that he has a force backing him.He also stated that the U.S.

FILE - A teenage boy sleeps through most of the late morning on Jan. 13, 2018, in his home in Brooklyn, New York.

FILE-A driver sits in his vehicle as he waits for a health care professional to swab his nose for a COVID-19 PCR test at a Nomi Health testing center inside Tropical Park in Miami on May 24, 2022. (Daniel A.

Novavax's vaccine is based on an older technology that has been used for decades to combat diseases including hepatitis B and influenza. Wednesday's decision is in addition to the earlier clearance for the protein-based vaccine as a primary two-shot regimen for those 12 years and above.

LEONIA, N.J. - Two men are set to spend 40 years behind bars for their involvement in the kidnapping of a Philadelphia teen in 2021.  United States Attorney Jacqueline C.

Ryan Seacrest has been seen for the first time since he revealed a week ago he had come down with COVID-19.The morning show star looked healthy on Tuesday in a dark suit with a polka dot scarf around his neck in New York City.The 47-year-old The Kardashians producer was with his 24-year-old model girlfriend Aubrey Paige.

descendants. Worse, they potentially undermine a critical message: Covid vaccines still provide good protection against all of these variants. Much of the recent hubbub arose because the Centers for Disease Control updated its estimates of circulating variants, noting that two — BQ.1 and BQ.1.1., both descendants of the by-now familiar BA.5 — combined now account for about 11% of infections in the US.

Covid-19 cases in the second week of October. The Department's Surveillance Officer Dr Pradeep Awate had earlier said that the state has reported the XBB variant, which is a new variant having a "growth advantage" over BA.2.75 and immune evasive property. The city civic body asked citizens to get vaccinated against the viral infection, if not done so till now and also get booster dose, and wear face masks in crowded places and follow other COVID-19 protocols.

FILE - An interior view of seats in an American Airlines B737 MAX airplane is seen at Dallas-Forth Worth International Airport in Dallas, Texas on Dec. 2, 2020.

Before there was the radio, telephone or electric power in most American homes, there were these jeans.

Car Seat Headrest has announced that he’s cancelled his upcoming US tour and performances at the When We Were Young festival due to health issues.The band, fronted by Will Toledo, were set to begin a tour tomorrow (October 20) in Pioneertown, California which was set to run for the next week and incorporate three sets at Las Vegas’ When We Were Young.Taking to Twitter, Toledo revealed that ongoing health issues have forced the cancellation of the tour. He wrote: “After another month of struggling to regain my health, I am currently forced to face the fact that my body lacks the basic levels of functionality necessary to leave the house most days, let alone embark on a tour.“As a result, we are unfortunately forced to pull out of the When We Were Young festival dates, and cancel our upcoming California tour.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu arrived in Sri Lanka on Wednesday (19) to discuss U.S.-Sri Lanka relations and Sri Lanka’s economic situation.US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung tweeted that she welcomed US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu/Assistant Secretary Lu will meet with senior Sri Lankan officials to discuss ways in which the United States and Sri Lanka can promote economic stability, regional security, human rights, and responsive, transparent, and inclusive governance.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu will be engaging in a visit to Sri Lanka from October 17th until October 19th to discuss U.S.-Sri Lanka relations and Sri Lanka’s economic situation.During his visit, Assistant Secretary Lu will meet with senior Sri Lankan officials to discuss ways in which the United States and Sri Lanka can promote economic stability, regional security, human rights, and responsive, transparent, and inclusive governance.This visit comes after several other visits by top US Government officials such as Under Secretary-General Victoria Nuland. 

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Isuru Bandara, alleged business partner of Thilini Priyamali, who was remanded for defrauding over Rs. one billion, was remanded until Wednesday (19).The suspect was remanded when the case was called before the Acting Fort Magistrate Shilani Perera on Tuesday (18).After presenting the suspect who was arrested on Monday by the Criminal Investigation Department to the Court, the Magistrate who rejected the bail request ordered for the suspect to be remanded.The magistrate stated that bail cannot be considered in the case of a complex investigation and issued orders preventing the transfer of the vehicle with a value of over Rs.

squeezed by inflation, are being warned well ahead of winter to take steps to keep their home heating costs down this year. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects a slightly colder winter this year than last year, meaning heating fuel prices will likely rise as Americans use more energy.Recently, the U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasted that many households across the U.S.

Isabella Sierra is a star on the rise. She plays Sofia, Teresa Mendoza’s daughter, and has quickly become one of “La Reina del Sur’s” most beloved characters. Over the course of seasons two and three, we’ve witnessed Sofia’s personal and professional growth, resulting in one of the series’ most captivating stories.

A study of essential and frontline workers in six US states who tested positive for COVID-19 and received two or three mRNA vaccine doses before Delta infections and three doses before Omicron infections suggests that they had significantly milder infections and lower viral loads than their unvaccinated peers.

New research from the American Psychological Association (APA) shows that various state restrictions and lockdowns imposed during the first 6 months of the pandemic were not related to worsening mental health. The study is published in Health Psychology.The research was based on data collected from a survey of

NEW YORK (AP) - Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott donated $84.5 million to Girl Scouts of the USA and 29 of its local branches, the 110-year-old organization said Tuesday, calling it a vote of confidence."Her support of our organization means honestly just as much as the donation," Sofia Chang, CEO of GSUSA, said in an interview.It's the largest donation the Girl Scouts have received from an individual since their founding in 1912, she said. The funds will help the organization recover from the impact of the pandemic, which drove down membership.

MOSCOW - Basketball star Brittney Griner, who was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison on drug possession charges, is growing increasingly nervous about the prospects of being released, her lawyer said.Griner was in Russia to compete during the WNBA offseason when Russian authorities said she had vape canisters with cannabis oil inside her luggage while traveling through an airport in Moscow in February.The Biden administration reportedly talked about a potential prisoner swap to free her and another American held in a Russian jail, Paul Whelan. But Griner's lawyer, Alexandr D.

FILE - The Supreme Court of the United States is pictured on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal seeking to give people born in American Samoa U.S.

Fauci, long Covid impairs the body system without any signs, and that's why it has not attracted much attention as a death rate. There is no test for long Covid – its precise causes remain mysterious and little is known about how it interacts with other medical and physical conditions. The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that between 10% and 20% of Covid-19 survivors have been left with lasting symptoms including breathlessness, fatigue, and cognitive dysfunction that can persist long after the acute infection has resolved.

US federal health authorities are gearing up for a widely-expected resurgence of coronavirus during winters. The BQ.1 variant of Covid-19 has already outpaced many rival strains in European nations from England to Germany, where the Covid wave has resurged. Previously, the CDC bundled BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 with their shared parent BA.5.

Colombo (News 1st) – Sri Lankan Writer Shehan Karunatilaka won the prestigious Booker Prize for fiction on Monday (17) for “The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida,” a satirical “afterlife noir” set during Sri Lanka’s brutal civil war.Karunatilaka, one of Sri Lanka’s leading authors, won the 50,000 pound ($57,000) award for his second novel. The 47-year-old, who has also written journalism, children’s books, screenplays and rock songs, is the second Sri Lanka-born Booker Prize winner, after Michael Ondaatje, who took the trophy in 1992 for “The English Patient.”Karunatilaka received the award from Camilla, Britain’s queen consort, during a ceremony at London’s Roundhouse concert hall.The judges’ unanimous choice, “The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida” is the darkly humorous story about a murdered war photographer investigating his death and trying to ensure his life’s legacy.Karunatilaka said Sri Lankans “specialize in gallows humor and make jokes in the face of crises”.“It’s our coping mechanism,” he said, and expressed hope that his novel about war and ethnic division would one day be “in the fantasy section of the bookshop.”Former British Museum director Neil MacGregor, who chaired the judging panel, said judges chose the book for “the ambition, the scope and the skill, the daring, the audacity and the hilarity of the execution.”“It’s a book that takes the reader on a rollercoaster journey through life and death, right to what the author describes as the dark heart of the world,” MacGregor said.

WASHINGTON (AP) - A majority of U.S. adults expect America's relations with foreign adversaries like Russia and North Korea to grow more hostile, according to a new poll, a major shift in public opinion from four years ago under President Donald Trump.Two years into the Biden administration, 60% of U.S. adults say relations with adversaries will get worse, up from 26% four years ago at the same point in the Trump administration, according to the poll from the Pearson Institute and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

FILE-An image of a black bear in a zoo in 2009. (Angela Rowlings/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images) MORRIS, Conn. - A 250-pound (113-kilogram) black bear mauled a 10-year-old boy playing in his grandparents’ backyard in Connecticut and tried to drag him away before the animal was fatally shot by police, authorities said.The child was attacked about 11 a.m.

ATLANTA - A Georgia inmate accused of stealing $11 million reportedly impersonated billionaires, including a California movie mogul, while inside a maximum-security lock-up.Arthur Lee Cofield Jr., a 31-year-old gang member serving 14 years for armed robbery, is accused of using contraband cell phones from inside the Georgia Department of Corrections’ Special Management Unit to impersonate California billionaire Sidney Kimmel and open a fraudulent bank account in his name. Cofield allegedly arranged for $11 million to be wired from Kimmel’s Charles Schwab account to a company in Idaho for the purchase of 6,106 American Eagle one-ounce gold coins.Federal prosecutors believe Cofield then allegedly arranged for a private plane to transport the coins to Atlanta, where some funds were used to purchase a $4.4 million house in Buckhead.The scheme is believed to amount to one of the largest heists pulled off from inside an American prison. Sidney Kimmel (L) and Actress Amanda Seyfried arrive at the premiere of "Gone" at ArcLight Hollywood on February 21, 2012 in Hollywood, California.

FILE-Economic stimulus checks are prepared for printing at the Philadelphia Financial Center in 2008 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Jeff Fusco/Getty Images) Millions of Americans are still eligible to receive a COVID-19 stimulus payment, with some households in store for a possibly massive payment.

PHILADELPHIA - The U.S. Marshals Service is offering a cash reward for information that leads to the arrest of a teen wanted for murder in a deadly ambush shooting near a high school in September. According to the U.S.

PHILADELPHIA - Workers at the Philadelphia Museum of Art are returning to work after reaching agreement on a contract that ended a strike of almost three weeks.The Philadelphia Museum of Art Union announced Sunday night that members had "voted 99 percent in favor" of ratifying what it called "our hard-won first contract."Museum workers called a one-day warning strike on Sept. 16 before launching the institution’s first museum-wide strike Sept.

Sore throat, congestion, fatigue, cough and runny nose continue to be the most reported symptoms Covid has been surprising us with a new variant every few months. Of course,  Omicron has changed the course of COVID pandemic. Following the emergence of this variant, the symptoms related to it have become much milder, but in terms of how they spread, each one seems to be fitter than its predecessor.  And the newest cousins in the block are BA.5.1.7 and BF.7., again which are said to have greater transmissibility which brings concerns of a new wave during Diwali.  The latest Omicron subvariant BF.