WHO says new bird strain is "one of most lethal" flu viruses

A new bird flu strain that has killed 22 people in China is "one of the most lethal" of its kind and transmits more easily to humans than another strain that has killed hundreds since 2003, a World Health Organization (WHO) expert said on Wednesday. The H7N9 flu has infected 108 people in China since it was first detected in March, according to the Geneva-based WHO.

Although it is not clear exactly how people are being infected, experts say they see no evidence so far of the most worrisome scenario - sustained transmission between people. An international team of scientists led by the WHO and the Chinese government conducted a five-day investigation in China, but said they were no closer to determining whether the virus might become transmissible between people.

"The situation remains complex and difficult and evolving," said Keiji Fukuda, the WHO's assistant director-general for health security. "When we look at influenza viruses, this is an unusually dangerous virus for humans," he said at a briefing.

Another bird flu strain - H5N1 - has killed 30 of the 45 people it infected in China between 2003 and 2013, and although the H7N9 strain in the current outbreak has a lower fatality rate to date, Fukuda said: "This is definitely one of the most lethal influenza viruses that we've seen so far." Read more >>

Internet freedom showdown looming: US

A number of countries are aggressively trying to control the Internet, a top US diplomat cautioned Thursday, insisting Washington would give no ground when it comes to curbing freedoms on the Web.

"Many Middle Eastern countries, Russia, China and others are I believe going to take an increasingly aggressive stand to try to control the Internet," Alec Ross, the State Department's outgoing senior adviser on innovation, told reporters in Geneva.

The fact that many countries appeared to be investing heavily, "billions and billions of dollars", in next generation surveillance technologies was an indication of their intentions to clamp down on Internet freedoms, Ross warned.

The clamp-down was coming amid a clear shift of power all over the world from governments and other state hierarchies towards citizens and networks of citizens, he said during his last press conference before leaving his government position. Read more >>

Unemployment Has Risen in Two-Thirds of European Countries Since 2010

Unemployment has risen in two-thirds of European countries since 2010 as austerity hit growth and jobs, the International Labor Organization has said. In its annual world of work report, the Geneva-based ILO warned that the weaknesses in the labor market were becoming ingrained, with high levels of long-term and youth unemployment.

The study found there were still 50 million fewer jobs in the global economy than before the recession began in 2008 and it was unlikely that growth would be strong enough in the next two years to find jobs for an extra 80 million people looking for work.

Raymond Torres, director of the International Institute for Labour Studies and author of the report, said: “This is not a normal employment slowdown. Four years into the global crisis, labour market imbalances are becoming more structural, and therefore more difficult to eradicate. Certain groups, such as the long-term unemployed, are at risk of exclusion from the labor market. This means they would be unable to obtain new employment even if there were a strong recovery.” More...