Iran's Zarif hits back after Trump's 'No thanks' Twitter post - Al Jazeera English

President Donald Trump has said the United States will not lift sanctions on Iran in order to enter negotiations with it, in a response to the Iranian foreign minister who suggested Tehran was still willing to talk on the condition Washington "correct[ed] its past" and removed a series of tough economic measures.

There has been growing friction between the two longtime foes since 2018 when Trump pulled his country out of a landmark nuclear deal signed between Iran and world powers. The US has since reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran's economy while calling for negotiations on a new accord that also addressed Tehran's ballistic missiles programme and its support for regional armed groups. 

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The tensions reached the highest levels in decades earlier this month after the US assassinated top Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike in Baghdad. Iran responded by firing missiles at US targets in Iraq on January 8, but the retaliatory strikes did not cause any fatalities and Trump signalled the US would not respond militarily and instead move ahead with more "punishing economic sanctions".

On Friday, Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told Germany's Der Spiegel magazine that he would "never rule out the possibility that people will change their approach and recognise the realities" when asked about possible negotiations with the US following Soleimani's killing.

"For us, it doesn't matter who is sitting in the White House, what matters is how they behave," he said in the interview published on Saturday, reiterating his country's demand that the US would have to first lift the sanctions before any new negotiations begin.

"The Trump administration can correct its past, lift the sanctions and come back to the negotiating table. We're still at the negotiating table. They're the ones who left," Zarif continued, before adding that "the day will come" when the US "will have to compensate for inflicting "great harm" on Iranians.

"We have a lot of patience," he said.

In Washington, Trump said in a Twitter post late on Saturday, "Iranian Foreign Minister says Iran wants to negotiate with The United States, but wants sanctions removed," and added: "No Thanks!".

Zarif hit back on Sunday by tweeting an excerpt from the interview with Der Spiegel.

"@realdonaldtrump is better advised to base his foreign policy comments & decisions on facts, rather than @FoxNews headlines or his Farsi translators," Zarif said in the tweet with the interview excerpt.

.@realdonaldtrump is better advised to base his foreign policy comments & decisions on facts, rather than @FoxNews headlines or his Farsi translators

To be better informed, he can read my entire interview (in English) https://t.co/eZR8NzuWXV

Too many words? Then just read this: pic.twitter.com/URkbUll49P

— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 26, 2020

Meanwhile, on Saturday, Ali Asghar Zarean, an aide to Iran's nuclear chief, said the country's enriched uranium stockpile has exceeded 1,200 kilogrammes (2,646 pounds), which is far beyond the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers allowed.

"Iran is increasing its stockpile of the enriched uranium with full speed," he said. The claim has not been verified by the United Nations's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Under the 2015 agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran agreed to limit its enrichment of uranium under the watch of UN inspectors in exchange for the lifting of sanctions.

In reaction to Washington's unilateral withdrawal from the deal and its reimposition of sanctions, Iran has gradually rolled back its commitments. On January 5, days after the US drone strike that killed Soleimani, Tehran announced it would no longer abide by any of the JCPOA's limitations to its enrichment activities.

In November, the IAEA said Iran's stockpile of low-enriched uranium had grown to 372.3kgs (821 pounds) as of November 3. The nuclear deal limited the stockpile to 202.8kgs (447 pounds).

Iran has routinely promised to begin enriching its stockpile of uranium to higher levels closer to weapons-grade if world powers fail to negotiate new terms for the nuclear accord following Washington's moves.

The other signatories to the JCPOA - Germany, France, the United Kingdom, China and Russia - have been struggling to keep it alive.

SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies

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2020-01-26 10:58:00Z
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California case of coronavirus is 3rd confirmed in US - Fox News

The third case of coronavirus in the U.S. was confirmed in Southern California on Saturday, according to the Orange County Health Care Agency's Communicable Disease Control Division.

The patient had recently returned from Wuhan, China – epicenter of the outbreak that is believed to have killed at least 56 people -- and was in a hospital in good condition by Saturday evening, the agency said in a statement.

Officials didn't provide details about the infected patient but said there's no evidence anyone else in Orange County was exposed to the highly contagious virus.

CORONAVIRUS: 56 DEAD AND 1,975 INFECTED AS CANADA REPORTS 1ST CASE

The California case comes after two others reported in the Seattle and Chicago areas last week. Both of those patients were reportedly still in isolation.

CDC CONFIRMS CORONAVIRUS CASE IN ILLINOIS, DOZENS MORE UNDER INVESTIGATION

Canada, Australia and Malaysia also reported their first cases Saturday.

The novel virus has also sickened nearly 2,000 people.

Most coronaviruses cause only mild symptoms, similar to those of the common cold. Other strains, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), can cause pneumonia and death.

The California case was initially confirmed by the Saturday by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which contacted Orange County officials.

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There is no vaccine to protect against the virus, although the National Institutes of Health confirmed to Fox News that they were in the “early stages” of developing one, and officials were hoping a lockdown placed on 13 cities in China and elsewhere would help contain the virus from spreading further.

Fox News' Nick Givas contributed to this report. 

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2020-01-26 10:38:08Z
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A third case of coronavirus is confirmed in the US as China struggles to contain outbreak - CNN

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notified Orange County health officials Saturday that a potential case of coronavirus tested positive.

The person who tested positive traveled from Wuhan, China, -- the epicenter of the outbreak -- and is in isolation and in "good condition" at a local hospital, the Orange County Health Care Agency said in a statement.

State and federal officials are following up with anyone who may have had close contact with the person and is at risk of infection.

In the US, two previous cases of the virus have been confirmed in Illinois and Washington state.

The CDC said it's taking aggressive measures to stop the spread of the virus in the United States, but while it considers it a serious public health threat, the immediate risk to Americans is low.

At least 56 people have been killed by the coronavirus in China, nearly 2,000 confirmed cases have been reported as the nation struggles to contain the outbreak.

Chinese authorities have imposed indefinite restrictions on public transport and travel, with motor vehicles banned in Wuhan's city center starting Sunday to control the flow of people. Only vehicles with special permits, free shuttles and government vehicles will be allowed to move around.

Amid the lockdown, countries like the US and France have been trying to evacuate their citizens from the central Chinese city. Outside of China, more than 40 confirmed cases have been identified in about a dozen countries.

Coronaviruses are transmitted by animals and people, and the Wuhan strain has been linked to a market in the city that was selling seafood and live animals, including wild species. The Chinese government announced Sunday that is banning all sales of wild animals throughout the country

Beijing will deploy an additional 1,600 medical professionals to Wuhan to help the city cope with the growing number of coronavirus patients, health officials said.

CNN's Alta Spells contributed to this report

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2020-01-26 10:18:00Z
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Coronavirus "whistleblower" nurse says China has 90,000 sick - New York Post

The Coronavirus now has a whistleblower — a nurse in Wuhan who insists in a shocking online video that close to 90,000 people in China have the disease, far more than the 1,975 reported by officials.

“I am in the area where the coronavirus started,” her video begins. Wuhan is the epicenter of the outbreak.

“I’m here to tell the truth,” the anonymous nurse says in the video, which shows her wearing a full-head face mask.

“At this moment, Hubei province, including the Wuhan area, even China, 90,000 people have been infected by a coronavirus.”

She does not reveal how she arrived at the sobering statistic.

The video has been viewed on YouTube some two million times, the Daily Mail reported.

Other horrifying videos have shown dead bodies covered in sheets lying in hospital hallways.

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2020-01-26 08:32:00Z
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Third US case of coronavirus confirmed in California, health officials say - CNBC

A laboratory technician works with a pipette at the Institute of Virology at the Charité Berlin Mitte, where investigations on coronavirus are underway.

Christophe Gateau | Getty Images

The third U.S. case of coronavirus has been confirmed in Orange County, California, the OC Health Care Agency's Communicable Disease Control Division announced in a press release Sunday.

"The OC Health Care Agency's (HCA) Communicable Disease Control Division received confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this evening that an Orange County, California case has tested positive for the novel coronavirus," the agency said.

The patient has been described as a traveler from Wuhan, China — the epicenter of the disease's outbreak — and is in isolation in a hospital in "good condition," according to the release.

The new respiratory illness has so far sickened more than 1,975 people and killed 56, the majority of which are in Wuhan.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

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2020-01-26 07:53:00Z
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Xi Jinping warned of the 'grave situation' created by the 'accelerating' spread of coronavirus - Business Insider

• Chinese President Xi Jinping warned of the „grave situation“ posed by the deadly coronavirus outbreak and promised ramped-up measures were coming from the government to address and contain the virus.
• Multiple reports said Xi announced the government was establishing a task force to address the crisis, and citizens could expect increased monitoring of public spaces and more resources opening up in affected areas.
• As 12 cities were officially put on lockdown, citizens called for Beijing to step in after online posts slammed local officials who appeared to have botched their initial response to the virus.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned of the „grave situation“ posed by the deadly coronavirus outbreak.

Xi convened a special government meeting on the Lunar New Year holiday, and spoke alongside Communist Party leadership in some of his first comments warning of the massive outbreak, according to reported summaries by state television.

„Confronted with the grave situation of this accelerating spread of pneumonia from infections with the novel coronavirus, we must step up the centralized and united leadership under the party central“ Xi said, according to The New York Times.

The president then outlined a plan for country-wide measures to confront the spread of the outbreak, including ramping up treatment for patients and distributing resources to affected areas.

The Times reported that leadership said it will establish a task force to address the crisis, that among other measures, could engage local and military medical resources and ensure increased monitoring of passengers and visitors at railway stations, airports, and ports.

„We’re sure to be able to win in this battle to beat the epidemic through prevention and control,“ Xi said.

The president’s comments come after he was relatively silent about the spreading virus as frustrations grew over authorities in the Chinese province identified as the outbreak’s epicenter.

Local officials in Wuhan, a city of roughly 11 million in the central China Hubei province, were at the front of the initial response to increasing reports of a mysterious virus.

The city been quarantined since Thursday and travel in or out is of the area was canceled. However, Wuhan’s mayor admitted that initial „warnings were not sufficient,“ just one aspect of the public health response that he said was largely botched.

Trending posts on Chinese social media platform Sina Weibo called for the Communist Party to address the crisis as citizens bristled under measures like the government-ordered quarantine of 35 million people across 12 cities.

Multiple reports recalled the Chinese government’s response to the 2002-2003 SARS epidemic that originated in China before it sickened 8,000 and killed 744, in which officials largely tried to cover up the deadly spread until a whistleblower revealed the true scale of the disease.

It appears the government has taken a wholly different approach since the outbreak two weeks ago, as the World Health Organization said throughout its work so far in the country, Beijing had been cooperative and transparent in coordinated efforts to address the virus.

Read more:

Chinese people are turning on the government as the coronavirus outbreak spirals into the Lunar New Year

Hospital staff in Wuhan are wearing adult diapers because they don’t have time to pee while caring for an overwhelming number of coronavirus patients

The Wuhan coronavirus has spread to 10 countries. Here’s how to protect yourself while traveling.

Face masks aren’t a very effective way to prevent the spread of coronavirus, experts say, despite spiking sales

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2020-01-25 20:39:35Z
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Turkey earthquake death toll rises to 22, more than 1000 injured - Fox News

ANKARA, Turkey – The death toll from a strong earthquake that rocked eastern Turkey climbed to 22 Saturday, with more than 1,000 people injured, officials said.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, speaking at a televised news conference near the epicenter of the quake, said 39 people had been rescued from the rubble of collapsed buildings, including a woman recovered 14 hours after the main tremor.

Rescue workers were continuing to search for people buried under the rubble of collapsed buildings in Elazig province and neighboring Malatya, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said earlier.

IRAN HIT WITH MAGNITUDE 4.9 EARTHQUAKE NEAR NUCLEAR PLANT

Emergency workers and security forces distributed tents, beds and blankets as overnight temperatures dropped below freezing in the affected areas. Mosques, schools, sports halls and student dormitories were opened for hundreds who left their homes after the quake.

Rescue workers try to reach people under a collapsed building following a strong earthquake in Elazig in the eastern Turkey, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020. The earthquake rocked eastern Turkey on Friday, causing some buildings to collapse and killing scores of people, Turkish officials said. (IHA via AP)

“The earthquake was very severe, we desperately ran out (of our home),” Emre Gocer told the state-run Anadolu news agency as he sheltered with his family at a sports hall in the town of Sivrice in Elazig. “We don’t have a safe place to stay right now.”

The quake hit Friday at 8:55 p.m. local time (1755 GMT) at a depth of 6.7 kilometers (around 4 miles) near Sivrice, the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, or AFAD, said. Various earthquake monitoring centers gave magnitudes ranging from 6.5 to 6.8.

AFAD said it was followed by 228 aftershocks, the strongest with magnitudes 5.4 and 5.1.

At least five buildings in Sivrice and 25 in Malatya province were destroyed, said Environment and Urbanization Minister Murat Kurum. Hundreds of other structures were damaged and made unsafe.

Soylu said 18 people were killed in Elazig and four in Malatya. Some 1,030 people were hurt. Speaking at the same news conference, Koca said 34 people remain in intensive care.

Television footage showed emergency workers removing two people from the wreckage of a collapsed building in the town of Gezin. Another person was saved in the city of Elazig, the provincial capital, and two more from a house in Doganyol, Malatya.

PUERTO RICO SHOCKED BY MAGNITUDE 5.9 EARTHQUAKE CAUSING FURTHER DAMAGE TO ISLAND

A prison in Adiyaman, 110 kilometers (70 miles) southwest of the epicenter, was evacuated after being damaged in the quake.

AFAD said 28 rescue teams had been working around the clock. More than 2,600 personnel from 39 of Turkey’s 81 provinces were sent to the disaster site.

“Our biggest hope is that the death toll does not rise,” Parliament Speaker Mustafa Sentop said.

Rescuers work on a collapsed building after a strong earthquake struck in Elazig in the eastern Turkey, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020. The earthquake rocked eastern Turkey on Friday, causing some buildings to collapse and killing scores of people, Turkish officials said. (IHA via AP)

Communication companies announced free telephone and internet services for residents in the quake-hit region, while Turkish Airlines announced extra flights.

Soylu said emergency work was proceeding under the threat of aftershocks.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Twitter overnight that all measures were being taken to "ensure that the earthquake that occurred in Elazig and was felt in many provinces is overcome with the least amount of loss."

Neighboring Greece, which is at odds with Turkey over maritime boundaries and gas exploitation rights, offered to send rescue crews should they be needed.

Elazig is some 565 kilometers (350 miles) east of the Turkish capital, Ankara.

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Turkey sits on top of two major fault lines and earthquakes are frequent. Two strong earthquakes struck northwest Turkey in 1999, killing around 18,000 people.

A magnitude 6 earthquake killed 51 people in Elazig in 2010.

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2020-01-25 15:16:16Z
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