BARCELONA: African swine fever has been detected outside a containment zone in Spain’s northeastern Catalonia region for the first time since its outbreak in November, officials said on Friday.
African swine fever is a viral disease that is harmless to humans but nearly always fatal for pigs and wild boars.
Although it has not spread to domestic pig farms, the outbreak has disrupted exports from Spain, the world’s third-largest producer of pork and its derivatives.
Thirteen new cases in wild boars have been reported, including two in areas outside the six-kilometer containment zone near Barcelona, Catalonia’s agriculture department said.
Authorities then expanded the high-risk zone to the affected municipalities and restricted access to the surrounding woods to prevent further spread.
The outbreak was Spain’s first reported case since 1994, and more than 100 cases have now been detected in wild boars.
“More than ever, it is essential not to lower our guard against a disease that remains present,” said Oscar Ordeig, regional agriculture minister.
The origin of the outbreak remains unknown, and a judicial investigation is ongoing.
Spain swine fever spreads outside containment zone
https://arab.news/2kp2m
Spain swine fever spreads outside containment zone
- African swine fever is a viral disease that is harmless to humans but nearly always fatal for pigs and wild boars
LA 2028 Olympics chief to sell agency over Epstein uproar: reports
WASHINGTON: The embattled chairman of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics is selling his talent agency after his name appeared in the recent wave of revelations concerning late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to US media reports.
LA28 chairman Casey Wasserman has faced mounting calls to step down after racy emails he sent Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell in 2003 emerged in US Justice Department files dropped last month.
In a memo late Friday to the employees of talent agency Wasserman Group, which bears his surname, the entertainment executive reportedly said he would sell the firm but stay on as Olympics chief.
“I’m deeply sorry that my past personal mistakes have caused you so much discomfort,” Wasserman wrote in the memo published by multiple US media outlets, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.
“It’s not fair to you, and it’s not fair to the clients and partners we represent so vigorously and care so deeply about.”
Wasserman, 51, said in the memo that his appearance in the Epstein files had “become a distraction,” the Los Angeles Times reported.
He has not been accused of any criminal wrongdoing in the scandal.
He said in an apology last month that his exchange with Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sentence for trafficking underage girls for Epstein, took place before her crimes came to light.
In one email exchange between Wasserman and Maxwell in April 2003, he told her “I miss you” before appearing to ask for a massage.
The LA28 executive committee this week said he should continue in his role following a probe into his appearance in the files.
His talent agency represents a galaxy of stars from across music, sport and entertainment.
But several artists represented by Wasserman’s company, including Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Chappell Roan, have announced their departure from the agency since his involvement in the scandal emerged.
Multiple Los Angeles city officials have also called on Wasserman to step aside as head of the 2028 Olympics.
