International

WHO launches call to speed up genomics tech development

AFP

Countries should step up their work on genomic technologies to combat diseases, and share that technology more quickly with developing nations, a new WHO report argued Tuesday.

Genomics — the study of DNA sequences and gene functions — could make a vast contribution to improving human health, said the World Health Organization’s Science Council.

“Genomic technologies are driving some of the most ground-breaking research happening today,” said WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan.

“The benefits of these tools will not be fully realised unless they are deployed worldwide.”

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The report included a series of recommendations designed to help make that happen.

Genomics is the study of the total or part of the genetic sequence information of organisms and attempts to understand the structure and function of those sequences.

Its supporters hope it will provide efficient, cost-effective and robust means of preventing, diagnosing and treating major diseases.

– ‘Enormous contribution’ –

The Science Council was set up in April last year to advise WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on advances in science and technology that could directly improve global health.

Made up of nine leading scientists and public health experts, it is chaired by Professor Harold Varmus, a 1989 Nobel laureate and a former director of the US National Institutes of Health.

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The council chose to focus on genomics because of its successes in confronting infectious diseases, cancers, and other chronic diseases.

Genomics uses biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology to understand and use biological information in DNA and RNA, with benefits for medicine and public health.

“Genomics can make enormous contributions to human health, from surveying populations for infectious agents, such as the virus that causes Covid-19, to predicting and treating a wide variety of diseases, such as cancers and developmental disorders,” said Varmus.

Genome sequencing data became the basis of global monitoring of both how the SARS-CoV-2 virus was evolving, and the emergence of new Covid variants. It was also used in the development of vaccines.

– Bringing down costs –

It is not ethically or scientifically justifiable for less well-resourced countries to gain access to such technologies long after wealthy nations do, the council’s report argued.

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It advocated expanded access to genomic technologies — particularly outside the richest countries — by addressing shortfalls in financing, laboratory infrastructure, materials, and highly trained personnel.

The costs of establishing and expanding genomic technologies were declining, said the report — but they could be brought down further.

Tiered pricing, shared intellectual property rights and investing profits from one area into another could all help make genomic technologies more affordable, it argued.

Ministries should collaborate with scientific organisations on using genomics, building technical capacity and pooling resources with others, the report added.

But it also said that oversight and adherence to international standards was critical in promoting the ethical and legal use of information obtained with genomic methods.

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International

Luigi Mangione Pleads Guilty to Killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson

Luigi Mangione admitted Friday to fatally shooting Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, the largest health insurance group in the United States, during an appearance before a federal judge.

The case shocked the U.S. business community and dates back to December 2024, when Mangione opened fire on Thompson, 50, on a Manhattan street. Prosecutors have described the attack as being motivated by Mangione’s opposition to the U.S. health insurance system.

“On the morning of December 4, I shot Mr. Thompson in Manhattan and he died,” Mangione said as he pleaded guilty to a federal stalking charge related to his pursuit of the executive.

Mangione, 28, is scheduled to be sentenced on December 18, and prosecutors have indicated that they will seek a life sentence.

In addition to the federal charges related to stalking Thompson, Mangione also faces a murder case brought by the state of New York.

Following his guilty plea in federal court, Mangione’s defense asked a state court to dismiss the state charges, arguing that prosecuting him again for the same conduct would violate protections against double jeopardy.

“We have just filed our motion in state court to explain why the charges should be dismissed under New York’s protections against double jeopardy,” Mangione’s attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, said Friday.

Both the federal and state cases could result in a life sentence. Two other federal charges that initially carried the possibility of the death penalty were dismissed by a judge earlier this year.

International

ICE Plan to Equip Agents With Electric Shock Gloves Raises Abuse Concerns

Plans to equip U.S. immigration agents with gloves capable of delivering electric shocks are raising concerns over potential abuses by a law enforcement agency that critics accuse of using excessive force and providing inadequate training to its personnel.

The plan involves the potential purchase of electric-shock gloves for agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency primarily responsible for carrying out President Donald Trump’s campaign to deport millions of undocumented immigrants.

Democratic Representative Maxwell Frost criticized the proposal on X, arguing that the agency has already faced accusations of excessive force during immigration enforcement operations.

“As if assaulting and shooting people in the streets wasn’t enough,” Frost wrote. He also criticized the reported $20 million potential expenditure on the devices and called for greater restrictions on ICE.

The agency has faced growing scrutiny following a series of deadly shootings during immigration enforcement operations. Among the incidents were the deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota in January who were participating in protests against the agency.

Critics have focused on the tactics used by ICE agents when detaining immigrants, as well as allegations that training standards for newly recruited personnel have been lowered.

According to a procurement plan first reported by the Associated Press, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, could spend between $10 million and $20 million on the devices.

The gloves are described by the agency as tools intended for “distraction and de-escalation,” rather than lethal weapons. The system, known as GLOVE, stands for “Generated Low-Output Voltage Emitter.”

The device is manufactured by Compliant Technologies, a Kentucky-based company that describes its products as advanced non-lethal tools designed to protect and assist law enforcement and other personnel.

The proposal comes amid an intensifying national debate over ICE’s enforcement methods and the use of force during the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

International

Three U.S. Executions Set for Same Day as Trump Pushes to Expand Death Penalty

The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 U.S. states, while three others —California, Oregon and Pennsylvania— currently have moratoriums in place.

The United States is set to carry out three executions on the same day, a rare occurrence that has not happened since 2010, according to the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center.

President Donald Trump has sought to expand the use of capital punishment for what he describes as “the most heinous crimes.” In April, the Department of Justice proposed expanding execution methods to include firing squads, lethal gas and electrocution.

Tennessee is scheduled to execute Anthony Darrell Dugard Hines, 66, on Thursday. He was sentenced to death for the 1985 murder of a woman, according to local media.

In Oklahoma, Carlos Cuesta-Rodríguez, 70, is scheduled to be executed for a 2003 murder.

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Meanwhile, Alabama plans to execute Jeremy Williams, 42, who was sentenced to death for the rape and murder of a five-year-old girl.

The United States carried out 47 executions in 2025, the highest number since 2009, when 52 executions were recorded.

Florida conducted the largest number of executions last year, with 19, followed by Alabama, South Carolina and Texas, with five each.

Of the executions carried out in 2025, 39 were conducted by lethal injection. Three were carried out by firing squad and five through nitrogen hypoxia, a method that involves forcing nitrogen gas into a face mask, depriving the prisoner of oxygen.

The United Nations has condemned nitrogen gas as a cruel and inhumane method of capital punishment.