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Here are today’s picks from our editors.
China's water quality unaffected by epidemic
The ongoing novel coronavirus outbreak has not contaminated China's environment as the quality of urban air, surface water and drinking water sources are all kept stable, monitoring results from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) showed Saturday.
Between Feb. 1 and Feb. 19, Chinese environmental authorities have monitored the country's more than 6,900 drinking water sources and did not find any impact from the epidemic on the quality of the sources, the ministry said.
The quality of drinking water sources in Hubei Province, where the epidemic first broke out with the largest number of infections, have all been up to standard, the MEE said. (Xinhua)
Multiple airlines expected to resume China flights in late April
International airlines are expected to resume their China flights in late April after extending the suspension period of their operations due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Delta Air Lines has temporarily suspended its operations to China since February 6 and will relaunch them on April 30.
United Airlines has pushed the resumption of its China flights back to late April. It originally said it would temporarily halt its flights to Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu until March 28.
British Airways has also canceled all flights to the Chinese mainland and does not anticipate operating flights to either Beijing or Shanghai before April. (CGTN)
2,700 Turkish military vehicles enter Syria in 19 days
As many as 2,700 Turkish military vehicles have gone into Syria in the past 19 days, as part of a Turkish tactic to send military equipment to Idlib province in northwestern Syria and the northern province of Aleppo, a war monitor reported Saturday.
The deployment of Turkish soldiers and vehicles is part of the Turkish plan to bring to a halt the progress of the Syrian army in Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria. (Xinhua)
Helicopter pilot in Bryant crash had FAA violation in 2015
The pilot of a helicopter that crashed into a Southern California hillside, killing Kobe Bryant and eight others, was reprimanded five years ago for flying without permission into airspace while he had reduced visibility, according to a Federal Aviation Administration enforcement record.
Ara Zobayan was counseled by an FAA investigator after he violated FAA rules by crossing into busy airspace near Los Angeles International Airport in May 2015, according to the record, which was first reported Friday by the Los Angeles Times.
The record doesn't indicate whether Zobayan was carrying any passengers at the time. (AP)
Victoria's Secret sold amid shrinking profits and controversies
Victoria's Secret, the world-famous American lingerie brand, has been struggling of late.
The underwear firm's parent company L Brands (LB) sold a controlling stake of the lingerie-maker to private equity firm Sycamore Partners for $525 million on Friday.
After the sale, Sycamore Partners acquired 55 percent of the brand, while L Brands retains 45 percent. Earlier, Victoria's Secret's total enterprise was valued at $1.1 billion. (CGTN)
Roman Forum find could be shrine to Rome’s founder, Romulus
Italian archaeologists unveiled to the press Friday an exciting new find from the Roman Forum, which they say could be the lost shrine dedicated some 2,600 years ago to Romulus, Rome’s legendary founder and first king.
Archaeologists said they discovered a sarcophagus, but no one is hypothesizing the sarcophagus actually ever contained the bones of Romulus who, with his twin Remus, established the city near the Tiber River around 753 BC and founded the kingdom of Rome.
“We don’t know whether Romulus physically existed” the way he was described in legends, an expert said. (AP)
Ethiopia's Ababel Yeshaneh sets new half marathon world record
At the RAK Half Marathon in Dubai on Friday, the women's half marathon world record was broken twice – by the winner Ababel Yeshaneh from Ethiopia and runner-up Brigid Kosgei from Kenya.
Kosgei finished the race in 1:04:49, better than her own previous world record of 1:04:51. However, Yeshaneh was faster and reached the finish line in 1:04:31, as many as 20 seconds better than the old mark. (CGTN)
Thanks for listening and be sure to catch us tomorrow.
And now for the Question of the Day:
A boomerang is a curved throwing stick that comes back to you. Where did it get its name?
(Answer: From the Turuwal, a native tribe in Australia.)
Today’s quote is from Irish poet Seamus Heaney (1939-2013).
"It's difficult to learn poems off by heart that don't rhyme."
(Produced by Nancy Yan Xu, Ryan Yaoran Yu, Brian Lowe, and Paris Yelu Xu. Music by Eugene Loner.)