Philadelphia reinstates mask mandate as COVID cases rise
Starting Monday, everyone in Philadelphia was required to wear masks in indoor public places, except in businesses where proof of vaccination was checked upon entry. Over the past month and a half, a number of cities, including Philadelphia, lifted mask mandates that had been in place for some of the deadliest months of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the omicron subvariant known as BA.2 soon arrived, and infections began heading upward again. With a low but quickly climbing case count, Philadelphia became the first major U.S. city this spring to order its residents to put the masks back on.
World Bank Slashes forecast for global economic growth
The World Bank is slashing its forecast for global economic growth this year, citing the war in Ukraine, inflation and the lingering effects of the pandemic. The World Bank now expects the global economy to grow at a rate of 3.2% in 2022, down from its previous estimate of 4.1%, its president, David Malpass, said Monday. The World Bank estimated that the global economy grew 5.7% last year. The updated projection comes as policymakers from around the world head to Washington this week for meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Trump allies continue legal drive to erase his loss, stoking election doubts
In statehouses and courtrooms across the country, as well as on right-wing news outlets, allies of Donald Trump are pressing for states to pass resolutions rescinding Electoral College votes for President Joe Biden and to bring lawsuits that seek to prove baseless claims of large-scale voter fraud. Some of those allies are casting their work as a precursor to reinstating the former president. Legal experts dismiss the efforts as preposterous, noting that there is no plausible scenario under the Constitution for returning Trump to office. But the continued efforts are fueling a false narrative that has resonated with Trump’s supporters and stoked their grievances.
April storm brings heavy snow and rain to Northeast
A spring storm dropped heavy snow across central Pennsylvania on Monday and was heading into New York state, bringing power failures and the potential for slushy roadways overnight. A winter storm warning from the National Weather Service is in effect for counties across northern Pennsylvania and into central and northern New York through noon Tuesday. The south-central parts of Pennsylvania had received up to 8 inches of snow by Monday afternoon, while the higher elevation regions in New York, such as the Adirondacks and Catskills, could receive up to a foot. In New York, more than 16,000 customers had lost power Monday night.
Rocket fire from Gaza follows rising tensions in Jerusalem
Militants in Gaza fired a rocket into Israeli airspace Monday night that was intercepted by an Israeli air defense system, as tensions continued to rise after clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police at a holy site in Jerusalem. No group claimed responsibility for the rocket attack, but it followed several hints by Islamic Jihad, a militant group in Gaza, that it may respond to the clashes at the Haram al-Sharif compound, known to Jews as Temple Mount. It was believed to be the first rocket strike since January from Gaza, where tensions have been comparatively low since May.
A ‘Wild West’ of marijuana shops in Toronto
As Toronto comes back to life after two years of the pandemic, the damage is surfacing. Along the city’s many neighborhood main streets, “For lease” signs hang in dusty windows. The exception: cannabis shops, which the provincial government permitted by emergency order to keep operating during the pandemic. Now, 430 compete for customers, with another 88 in the approval process, even as some struggle to stay open. “It’s the wild, wild West,” said Kristyn Wong-Tam, a city councilor who supported the legalization of cannabis but has called for a moratorium on new shops in the city.
Ukraine war divides Orthodox faithful
With the Eastern Orthodox Easter approaching Sunday, tensions ripple through the church’s more than 200 million faithful, concentrated in eastern and southern Europe. Around the world, the war is dividing national churches, parishes and even families as they reassess relations with Patriarch Kirill and the Russian Orthodox Church. In the United States, some believers are switching churches. In France, Orthodox seminary students petitioned their bishop to break with the Moscow Patriarchate. In the Netherlands, police intervened at a Rotterdam church. The Ukraine war has pitted combatants under the Moscow Patriarch against one another.
French candidates’ economic programs hold key to the election
As French President Emmanuel Macron and far-right firebrand Marine Le Pen cross the country in a whirlwind of last-minute campaigning before the country’s presidential election on Sunday, their runoff will hinge to a large extent on perceptions of the national economy. Worries about widening economic insecurity, as well as the surging cost of living amid the fallout from Russia’s war on Ukraine, have become top issues in the race, ranking ahead of security and immigration. And Macron and Le Pen have starkly divergent visions of how to address citizens’ economic concerns.
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