Hysteria over swine flu is the real danger, some say

As the number of swine flu cases rises around the world, so is a gradual backlash — with some saying the threat the virus poses is overblown. By Sunday, 787 cases of the virus, known as influenza A (H1N1), had been confirmed in 17 countries, the World Health Organization said. The number of fatalities grew to 20

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Pakistan kills 80 in assault on Taliban

Pakistani armed forces have killed 80 militants since launching an assault on a region recently held by the Taliban, the military announced Sunday. Three soldiers have been killed and eight wounded in the crackdown in the Buner district in the northwest of the country, the military statement said. The Pakistani offensive started in the province last Sunday, after Taliban militants moved into Buner, a move that alarmed U.S

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Pakistan kills more militants in new action

Pakistani security forces say they have killed at least 16 militants overnight in the country’s volatile tribal region. This appears to be separate from the hostilities in the military’s week-long crackdown in northwestern Pakistan against a Taliban militant advance in the country’s North West Frontier Province. However, this reflects the tensions in the region and could signal a spread of fighting resulting from the crackdown.

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Living With Swine Flu: Mexico City Under the Cloud

It’s hard to read Reyna Hernandez’s distress behind her blue surgical mask. But you can hear it. “This is a very difficult time especially for our children,” the Mexico City housewife says as she waits outside the National Institute for Respiratory Diseases on the metropolis’ south side

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In the Developing World, Swine Flu Elicits Shrugs, Not Panic

If the fast spread of swine flu suggests the world is small, the global response to the epidemic reminds us that in many ways it’s still light years apart. Swine flu has been making headlines in the Western world, but in places like India and Africa, where “pandemic” is just another part of the daily vocabulary, no one has so much as stifled a sneeze

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