In Syria's western desert, Maree Al Shehab had given up hope of seeing his home city of Palmyra again, still less showing his children born over the last decade where they could trace their roots. https://t.co/7KnTThFDxk
This is NOT good news re the hantavirus ⬇️⬇️⬇️
The virus can remain in human semen for up to SIX YEARS following infection, according to a high quality Swiss study.
Like some other viruses including Ebola, it has the potential for sexual transmission even after a person has recovered.
The discovery means male patients are likely to be advised to change their sexual practices, as is the case with Ebola.
The research was conducted at the Spiez Laboratory, a Swiss government institute tasked with fighting nuclear, biological and chemical threats, and was published in the journal Viruses.
They investigated a Swiss 55-year-old man who had become infected with the Andes strain of the hantavirus in South America six years earlier.
They found that although there was no longer any trace of the virus in man’s blood, urine and respiratory tract, it was still detectable in his semen 71 months later.
They say the male testes may act as a “reservoir” where the virus can essentially “hide” and evade the body’s immune system, said the paper.
“Taken together, our results show that the Andes virus has the potential for sexual transmission,” the 2023 study said, although this has never been documented with hantavirus.
With Ebola, on the other hand, sexual transmission long after infection has been documented.
A 2021 Ebola outbreak in Guinea, which resulted in 23 cases and 12 deaths, was later linked to a survivor of the West Africa 2014-2016 epidemic, who had gone on to spread the virus through sex.
More....
We spoke to reporter Zaynab Faraj, who survived a triple-tap attack that killed her colleague, Amal Khalil.
She described how an Israeli strike first hit a car ahead of them, killing two civilians, before a second strike targeted their own vehicle, severely injuring Amal. Ms Faraj said she helped her into an empty house, where they lay wounded and terrified, waiting for help.
A third Israeli strike then hit the building where they were hiding, collapsing it on top of them.
“Amal was gone,” Ms Faraj said. “And I was left alone.”
Throughout the ordeal, the journalists made repeated calls for help. But Israel prevented the Lebanese Army and the Lebanese Red Cross from reaching them, informed sources told us.
A destroyed school, water station, playground and mosque. This is some of the destruction we saw in Debinne , a village that has been completely flattened by Israel, like many villages across the deep south.
We’ve been working on a full package on Israel’s “buffer zone” doctrine in Lebanon for @TheNationalNews , based on several reporting trips near the so-called “yellow line” - a belt of dozens of villages stretching roughly 5–7 kilometres from the border with Israel. More to come.
La karatéka palestinienne Mariam Bsharat devient la première Palestinienne à remporter le titre du championnat du monde de karaté !
Mabrouk championne 👏👏👏💪
Labneh Sandwich at Masabki Dairy
📍 Chtaura, Lebanon 🇱🇧
Explore Lebanon:t https://t.co/gnDMro0VK8
Located in the Bekaa Valley, the town of Chtaura is widely considered the dairy capital of Lebanon. At the heart of it is Masabki Dairy, a local institution where Uncle Elias has been a beloved fixture for nearly half a century.
While the ingredients seem incredibly simple, the sandwich represents the ultimate Lebanese comfort food. The use of dense, oil-cured labneh instead of a standard soft spread provides an intensely rich, tangy base that defines the region’s agricultural heritage. It is a legendary, unpretentious morning staple that locals and travelers consistently go out of their way to experience.
Credits: @coachbeasteats
CHILD PRAYING MANTIS: Dad, who are we all praying to exactly?
DAD PRAYING MANTIS: Depends which religion you belong to
CHILD: So not all bugs follow the same religion?
DAD: No, son… we’re in sects