ABC新闻:世卫组织称新冠病毒是世界头号公敌 首支疫苗或一年半后上市

The World Health Organisation is this morning warning the coronavirus could pose a greater global threat than terrorism. It made the stark prediction at a meeting in Geneva, describing the illness as public enemy number one. The virus has also been given the name COVID-19, and a possible vaccine is likely to be 18 months away. At least 13 Australian children and their families remain trapped in Wuhan, at the epicentre of the outbreak, as the death toll now climbs to more than one thousand.

Todays' closing the gap report has found that indigenous children under five are still dying at twice the rate of their non-indigenous counterparts. Just two of the seven targets are on track — pre school enrolments and high school attainment. Improvements are being made in other areas, but not as quickly as hoped, while school attendance rates haven't improved in 5 years. The PM is seeking to make changes to the report framework, setting new targets in April this year.
More than a hundred native animal species have been identified as being in urgent need of help after this summer's bushfires. An expert panel has compiled the list for the federal government, as part of efforts to salvage the animal populations that have survived. There have been no extinctions but the panel has warned time is critical. There's also the risk of another massive fish kill from the bushfires and recent heavy rainfall, as ash and sediment is washed into rivers.世界卫生组织今天早上警告称，冠状病毒构成的全球威胁可能比恐怖主义更大。世卫组织在日内瓦举行的会议上做出了简单明了的预测，称这种疾病是头号公敌。该病毒还在会议上被命名为COVID-19，而潜在的疫苗可能在18个月后问世。目前至少有13名澳大利亚儿童及其家人仍被困在疫情中心地武汉，而该病毒导致的死亡人数已攀升至1000多人。
今天公布的《缩小差距》报告发现，五岁以下土著儿童的死亡率仍是同龄非土著儿童的两倍。七个目标只有两个走上正轨——学前教育入学率和高中成绩。其他方面有所改善，但速度并没有希望的那样快，而学校出勤率在5年内都没有提高。澳大利亚总理正在寻求对报告大纲进行修改，并在今年4月制定新目标。
今年夏天爆发森林大火之后，100余种澳大利亚本土动物被列为急需救助的物种。一个专家小组为联邦政府编制了这份名单，这是挽救幸存动物种群行动的一部分。目前还没有物种灭绝，但专家组警告称，时间相当紧迫。另外，森林大火和最近的强降雨可能导致另一起鱼类大规模死亡事件，因为灰烬和沉淀物被冲进了河流。