World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk |
- Coronavirus live news: EU commission says AstraZeneca contract is binding and 'crystal clear'
- Facebook shuts popular Robinhood Stock Traders group amid GameStop frenzy
- ‘The perfect target’: Russia cultivated Trump as asset for 40 years – ex-KGB spy
- Hong Kong: China will no longer recognise British national overseas citizens
- EU 'not fit for purpose' to reduce poverty in Europe, says UN envoy
- Australian military to continue patrolling South China Sea as China warns Taiwan independence ‘means war’
- 'I was appalled to be tarred as misogynist': Variety critic hits back at Carey Mulligan's sexism accusations
- Biden expected to appoint nuclear deal architect as US Iran envoy
- Gay men caned 77 times in ‘medieval’ punishment in Indonesian province
- Alpine plants face extinction as melting glaciers force them higher, warns study
- Box seat: scientists solve the mystery of why wombats have cube-shaped poo
- Germany to push on with Covid travel ban plan as EU tries to coordinate rules
- How effective is the Novavax Covid vaccine and will it work against variants?
- Australia in talks with WHO and Europe over 'certainty' of Covid vaccine supplies
- Will Covid-19 sniffing dogs allow fans back into sporting events?
- Nancy Sinatra: 'I'll never forgive Trump voters. I hope the anger doesn't kill me'
- Confused about GameStop? Five films to watch to help you pretend to understand the stock market
- She survived in the wild against all odds. I took her class to learn how
- John Mayall’s teenage obsessions: ‘I lived in a tree house until I got married’
- Vampires, Muppets and prequels: The Great Gatsby’s new life out of copyright
- Coda review – formulaic yet sweet-natured crowd-pleaser
- Study reveals depth of BAME health inequality in England
- We are seeing a global vaccine apartheid. People’s lives must come before profit | Winnie Byanyima
- Democrats set to push for Covid relief without Republican Congress support – live updates
- Canadian couple who got vaccine meant for Indigenous people may face jail time
- ‘Getting tough' on China makes headlines, but abroad nobody cares what Johnson says | Simon Jenkins
- Biden move to refund UN population agency is 'ray of hope for millions'
- 'Violence starts at home': the Afghan women tackling domestic abuse at its source
- Slavery survivors moved ‘without notice, without reason’ in London lockdown
- Joe Biden axes 'global gag rule' but health groups call on him to go further
- Refugee rights 'under attack' at Europe's borders, UN warns
- Why has Germany advised against Oxford/AstraZeneca jab for over-65s?
- Pompeo's exit leaves new secretary of state with task of regaining department's trust
- Here in Europe's poorest country we have no vaccine to argue over
- Novavax Covid vaccine nearly 90% effective in UK trial – video
- Kenyan acrobatic troupe trains for post-Covid shows – in pictures
- 'What were they thinking?': Pelosi slams GOP over Marjorie Taylor Greene committee seat – video
| Coronavirus live news: EU commission says AstraZeneca contract is binding and 'crystal clear' Posted: 29 Jan 2021 02:51 AM PST Novavax vaccine 89% effective in UK and 60% in South Africa, trials show; Emirates suspends flights to and from UK; Vietnam reports nine new cases
Vietnam has reported 53 more Covid-19 infections on Friday as a new outbreak spreads to the capital Hanoi, where the ruling Communist party is holding its key five-yearly congress. Of the new cases, 47 were detected in Hai Duong province, the epicentre of the outbreak, the government said in a statement on its website.
Public health officials in Ireland have rejected a "zero-Covid" strategy as as impractical and risky. In what the Irish Times described as an unusually forthright criticism, members of Ireland's National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) said that advocates of the strategy of making "false promises" that an end to lockdown can be achieved soon through virus elimination. Ireland can't do zero COVID without N.Ireland which can't do it without Scotland which can't do it without England which can't do it without Wales. The two islands are tied together and have to cooperate to make elimination happen. https://t.co/JVD7DZFSzS Continue reading... |
| Facebook shuts popular Robinhood Stock Traders group amid GameStop frenzy Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:53 PM PST Facebook says group, which has 157,000 members, was taken down for allegedly violating policies unrelated to stock price surges Facebook has taken down the popular Wall Street discussion group, Robinhood Stock Traders, in a move that its founder described as backlash for conversations buoying shares of GameStop Corp and other companies this week. GameStop, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc and BlackBerry have been at the centre of a market battle as individual investors coordinating on social media including Reddit, and using trading apps such as Robinhood, bought shares and squeezed hedge funds that had bet that those struggling companies would tank. Continue reading... |
| ‘The perfect target’: Russia cultivated Trump as asset for 40 years – ex-KGB spy Posted: 29 Jan 2021 12:00 AM PST The KGB 'played the game as if they were immensely impressed by his personality', Yuri Shvets, a key source for a new book, tells the Guardian Donald Trump was cultivated as a Russian asset over 40 years and proved so willing to parrot anti-western propaganda that there were celebrations in Moscow, a former KGB spy has told the Guardian. Yuri Shvets, posted to Washington by the Soviet Union in the 1980s, compares the former US president to "the Cambridge five", the British spy ring that passed secrets to Moscow during the second world war and early cold war. Continue reading... |
| Hong Kong: China will no longer recognise British national overseas citizens Posted: 28 Jan 2021 05:22 PM PST Move comes after UK says people with status can move to Britain and eventually settle China has announced it will no longer recognise the passports of British national overseas citizens just hours after the UK launched its scheme to give passport holders a path to residency as political freedoms decline in Hong Kong. "From 31 January, China will no longer recognise the so-called BNO passport as a travel document and ID document, and reserves the right to take further actions," foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters, according to AFP. Continue reading... |
| EU 'not fit for purpose' to reduce poverty in Europe, says UN envoy Posted: 29 Jan 2021 02:00 AM PST Brexit risks exacerbating poverty issues, says human rights envoy after two-month investigation The European Union is "not fit for purpose" in the task of reducing poverty in Europe and Brexit risks exacerbating the problem, the UN's special envoy on human rights has said after a two-month investigation. Prof Olivier De Schutter, who was given access to senior officials across the bloc's institutions, said the EU's "constitutional framework" was driving a race to the bottom in corporation and income tax and salary levels. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 28 Jan 2021 11:05 PM PST Australia 'monitoring developments' as Taiwan reports an increase in Chinese aircraft in its defence zone Australian military ships and aircraft will continue to patrol the South China Sea amid warnings from China that a declaration of independence by Taiwan would "mean war". With Taiwan reporting an increase in Chinese military aircraft in its air defence zone, and with Beijing cautioning independence forces against "playing with fire", the Australian government is closely monitoring developments in the region. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 28 Jan 2021 03:14 PM PST Exclusive: Dennis Harvey, the critic whose review of Promising Young Woman prompted outrage from its star and an apology from his editors, has spoken out Dennis Harvey, the veteran film critic whose review of Promising Young Woman has sparked a furore across the industry, has hit back at accusations of misogyny amid calls for Variety to fire him. Harvey's review was published more than a year ago, following the film's premiere at the Sundance film festival. Largely positive, it called Mulligan's performance "skilful, entertaining and challenging" while also querying the central casting. While "a fine actress", wrote Harvey, Mulligan "seems a bit of an odd choice as this admittedly many-layered apparent femme fatale". Continue reading... |
| Biden expected to appoint nuclear deal architect as US Iran envoy Posted: 28 Jan 2021 08:32 PM PST Obama-era diplomat Robert Malley will face task of repairing ties that worsened under Trump after withdrawal from nuclear pact The Biden administration is expected name Robert Malley, a former top adviser in the Obama administration, as special envoy for Iran, according to multiple sources. Malley was a key member of former Barack Obama's team that negotiated the nuclear accord with Iran and world powers, an agreement that Donald Trump abandoned in 2018 in the face of strong opposition from Washington's European allies. Continue reading... |
| Gay men caned 77 times in ‘medieval’ punishment in Indonesian province Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:56 PM PST Men in Aceh province were detained by vigilantes before being caned in public Two gay men in Indonesia's Aceh province have been publicly caned 77 times each after they were reported to police by vigilantes who raided their apartment. Human rights groups have condemned the spectacle, which was watched by dozens of people in the capital Banda Aceh, as brutal and medieval. Continue reading... |
| Alpine plants face extinction as melting glaciers force them higher, warns study Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:15 PM PST 'Escalator to extinction' means aggressive species will eventually take over, threatening the entire mountain ecosystem Alpine flowers could go extinct after glaciers disappear as more competitive species colonise terrain higher up the mountain, new research has warned. Glaciers are retreating at historically unprecedented rates, exposing new land for plants to grow, which benefits delicate alpine species in the short term. However, these early pioneers – some of which are endemic – soon become endangered as more aggressive species take over, driving them out of their remaining habitat and decreasing overall biodiversity, according to the paper published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. Continue reading... |
| Box seat: scientists solve the mystery of why wombats have cube-shaped poo Posted: 28 Jan 2021 10:33 PM PST Unique physiology allows the Australian marsupial to produce square-shaped faeces that may aid communication How wombats produce their cube-shape poo has long been a biological puzzle but now an international study has provided the answer to this unusual natural phenomenon. The cube shape is formed within the intestines – not at the point of exit, as previously thought – according to research published in scientific journal Soft Matter on Thursday. Continue reading... |
| Germany to push on with Covid travel ban plan as EU tries to coordinate rules Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:36 AM PST Berlin planning to ban travel from UK, Portugal, Brazil and South Africa to stop spread of variants Germany is planning a near-total ban on travellers from Britain, Portugal, Brazil and South Africa as European governments increasingly move to bar entry from countries where more contagious Covid-19 variants are rampant. Berlin's initiative came as EU interior ministers met to discuss a more coordinated approach to international travel restrictions. Continue reading... |
| How effective is the Novavax Covid vaccine and will it work against variants? Posted: 29 Jan 2021 01:24 AM PST Everything you need to know about the trial results for a new coronavirus vaccine In an interim analysis of a phase 3 clinical trial conducted in the UK, the vaccine has shown 89% efficacy, with 27% of participants in the trial – almost 4,000 people – older than 65. That trial suggested 95.6% efficacy against the original coronavirus and 85.6% efficacy against the more recent UK strain. Those results were based on the first 62 cases of Covid-19 identified among volunteers, with 56 cases among those given a placebo against just six in those given the vaccine. Continue reading... |
| Australia in talks with WHO and Europe over 'certainty' of Covid vaccine supplies Posted: 29 Jan 2021 02:27 AM PST Health minister Greg Hunt wants to ensure vaccine doses reach Australia but acknowledges potential impact of 'supply shocks' The Australian government will make urgent representations to the European Union after it threatened to block companies from exporting doses of the Covid-19 vaccine amid problems with AstraZeneca's international supply chain. The federal health minister, Greg Hunt, confirmed on Friday the government would approach both the World Health Organization and the EU to ensure "certainty" for Australia's vaccine supplies after the European Commission threatened to impose export bans on companies manufacturing the shots. Continue reading... |
| Will Covid-19 sniffing dogs allow fans back into sporting events? Posted: 29 Jan 2021 01:30 AM PST The Miami Heat will employ canines to sniff out the virus among fans attending games. But can dogs be trained in time to work at the Super Bowl? Nearly 100 million people are expected to watch Super Bowl LV in Tampa, the first time the big game has been held during a pandemic (the World Series has survived two). But only 22,000 of those viewers, 7,500 of them vaccinated healthcare workers, will be in actual attendance, representing just one-third the capacity of Raymond James Stadium. Social distancing and face-coverings will be enforced. The first few rows will be kept clear as a buffer between the field and the fans. By this stage of the pandemic, everyone should be aware that, at any one time, a portion of the population is composed of asymptomatic carriers who can infect others they come into contact with. As a result, any large gathering has the potential to become a super-spreader event with wide-reaching consequences. Large-scale testing at gatherings such as sporting events is limited by the availability of trained personnel, equipment, money, and the time it takes for the results of the actual test to work. But an unconventional solution may be in the works. Continue reading... |
| Nancy Sinatra: 'I'll never forgive Trump voters. I hope the anger doesn't kill me' Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:53 PM PST She may be 80 and cut off by Covid, but she's still ready to walk all over Donald Trump. As her greatest songs are reissued, she reflects on the sexual politics of the 60s, her friendship with Elvis and her hopes for peace in the US Nancy Sinatra has one of the most famous surnames in America, but she has struggled to feel proudly American of late. It's a couple of weeks away from the inauguration of Joe Biden, and the singer and film star is recalling Donald Trump's preparations for his own inauguration in 2017: his first dance with his wife Melania would be to her father's signature hit, My Way. Sinatra was disgusted. Her father was no fan of Trump: according to Frank's former manager, he told Trump to "go fuck himself" after the billionaire refused to meet Frank's fee for a 1990 performance at an Atlantic City casino. Nancy, in a since deleted tweet to Trump, wrote: "Just remember the first line of the song." My Way begins: "And now the end is near." Continue reading... |
| Confused about GameStop? Five films to watch to help you pretend to understand the stock market Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:20 PM PST You don't have to be a redditer or a big investor to enjoy these Hollywood blockbusters that double as the perfect educational resource The GameStop debacle has put the stock market on everyone's radar this week – even those who rarely pay it any attention. Many are depicting the incident as a David-and-Goliath battle between small investors gathering on Reddit message-boards and Wall Street powerbrokers finding themselves unexpectedly on the back foot at their own game. Billions of dollars are in the balance. Along with such major news events, though, come the instant internet experts. Let's face it: most of us understand diddly squat about the stock market and rely on Hollywood to inform us about an industry that it portrays as a place in which, to quote from the tyrannical, fictional Gordan Gekko: "lunch is for wimps". Continue reading... |
| She survived in the wild against all odds. I took her class to learn how Posted: 28 Jan 2021 10:00 PM PST Woniya Thibeault, the runner up on Netflix's Alone, is offering an eight-week survival course, teaching more than how to skin a deer and tie a knot Left to fend for herself on Arctic land, with only 10 pieces of gear – among them a sleeping bag, a pot, and a bow and arrows – Woniya Thibeault didn't just want to survive. She wanted to find joy in the process of surviving. Scattered miles apart in the same rugged wilderness were nine other contestants looking to outlast one another and win big on the History Channel's popular survival reality series Alone. In it, contestants compete to stick it out in the wilderness for the longest time with limited resources – all have the option to tap out if it gets too much. The prize money – $500,000 – would have changed Thibeault's life, but winning wasn't her top priority. She was there for the experience. Continue reading... |
| John Mayall’s teenage obsessions: ‘I lived in a tree house until I got married’ Posted: 29 Jan 2021 01:00 AM PST As a huge box set of his work is released, the 87-year-old British bluesman reminisces about the thrill of discovering boogie-woogie piano and buying his first six-string in Japan I lived in Acre Lane in Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester, and became a teenager on 29 November 1946. My parents had divorced and I lived with my mother and my grandfather. The house was a bit crowded, so I built a tree house in the garden, which basically became my room, my world. I built it with window frames and tarpaulin, but eventually it had a paraffin lamp, a bed and all my 78rpm records and such up there. It was about 25ft (7.6 metres) up an oak tree. Continue reading... |
| Vampires, Muppets and prequels: The Great Gatsby’s new life out of copyright Posted: 29 Jan 2021 12:00 AM PST The Great Gatsby is out of US copyright and fans of Fitzgerald's novel have rushed to pay tribute with new books and fanfiction. What does it mean for the novel's legacy? On 2 January this year, the day after The Great Gatsby entered the US public domain, The Great Gatsby Undead was self-published on Amazon. Like F Scott Fitzgerald's hallowed novel, it is narrated by Nick Carraway, but in this version, according to the promotional blurb, "Gatsby doesn't seem to eat anything, and has an aversion to silver, garlic, and the sun". Gatsby, you see, is a vampire. More than 25m copies of The Great Gatsby have been sold since it was first published in 1925, and the expiration of copyright, 95 years after it was released, opens the door to anything and everything fans might want to do with it. The start of the year also brought the release of The Gay Gatsby ("Everyone's got something to hide, but the secrets come out at Gaylord Gatsby's parties – the gayest affairs West Egg ever had…"), and Jay the Great, a "modern retelling" of the story. On the fan fiction site Archive of Our Own (AO3), someone has uploaded a version of the novel that search-and-replaces Gatsby with Gritty, the name of the furry mascot for the Philadelphia Flyers ice hockey team. As one Twitter wit put it: "The Great Gatsby's out of copyright? Sounds like we've been given the green light." Continue reading... |
| Coda review – formulaic yet sweet-natured crowd-pleaser Posted: 28 Jan 2021 08:47 PM PST A hearing girl with a deaf family is torn between two worlds in a well-intentioned but conventional attempt to win over audiences There's an earnest old-fashioned Sundance-ness to writer-director Sian Heder's broad comedy-drama Coda, the kind of warm-hearted crowd-pleaser that the festival is most widely known for. In any normal year, it would probably have been met with audible approval throughout its premiere. But this isn't a normal year, with the majority of festival goers watching the film at home, perhaps less pumped up by the thrill of seeing it with a crowd. With or without an audience, it's a minor film, a little too formulaic at times, a tad too comfortable sticking to a dog-eared playbook, eager to be loved but not really trying hard enough to be remembered. Related: Sundance 2021: which films might break out this year? Continue reading... |
| Study reveals depth of BAME health inequality in England Posted: 28 Jan 2021 03:30 PM PST Impact in some ethnic minority groups equivalent to being 20 years older than actual age, study says The health impact of belonging to some ethnic minority groups is equivalent to being 20 years older than your actual age, England's largest ever study of health inequalities in BAME communities has found. Not only are people from these groups often poorer and more likely to suffer from underlying health conditions, they are also more likely to report worse treatment when visiting their GP surgery, and insufficient support from local services, such as housing and social care. Continue reading... |
| We are seeing a global vaccine apartheid. People’s lives must come before profit | Winnie Byanyima Posted: 28 Jan 2021 11:45 PM PST The poorest countries are missing out on adequate doses of vaccines – and the health implications should concern us all Nine months ago world leaders were queueing up to declare any Covid-19 vaccine a global public good. Today we are witness to a vaccine apartheid that is only serving the interests of powerful and profitable pharmaceutical corporations while costing us the quickest and least harmful route out of this crisis. I am sickened by news that South Africa, a country whose HIV history should have taught us all the most appalling life-costing consequences of allowing pharmaceutical corporations to protect their medicine monopolies, has had to pay more than double the price paid by the European Union for the AstraZeneca vaccine for far fewer doses than it actually needs. Like so many other low- and middle-income countries, South Africa is today facing a vaccine landscape of depleted supply where it is purchasing power, not suffering, that will secure the few remaining doses. Continue reading... |
| Democrats set to push for Covid relief without Republican Congress support – live updates Posted: 29 Jan 2021 02:48 AM PST
The last few months of the Trump administration were marked by an impasse between Democrats and Republicans in Congress over what should go into an economic relief bill for a country stricken with the coronavirus. The Biden administration is starting off the same way. But with Democrats in control of the White House, House and the Senate poised at 50-50, the struggle to get bipartisan agreement may no longer prove to be an obstacle. NBC News reports: White House economic adviser Brian Deese and Covid-19 coordinator Jeff Zientz held a call Thursday with Senate Democrats as they grapple with whether to cut a slimmed-down deal or use a process known as reconciliation to bypass the Senate's 60-vote rule to avoid a filibuster. "The sentiment is this: We would like Republicans to work with us to be part of the solution to deliver emergency help, but we can't wait, it's urgent, and we need to double-track this process," Democrat Sen. Chris Van Hollen from Maryland, who was on the call, told reporters. "So we will continue to reach out to Republicans, but I'm a big supporter of having an insurance policy in place through reconciliation."
Welcome to live coverage of US politics for Friday. Here's a catch-up on where we are, and what we can expect today… Continue reading... |
| Canadian couple who got vaccine meant for Indigenous people may face jail time Posted: 28 Jan 2021 09:32 AM PST Rodney and Ekaterina Baker were served with court notice, said Yukon community services minister A millionaire Canadian couple who secretly travelled to a remote community to receive a coronavirus vaccine meant for vulnerable and elderly Indigenous residents may now face jail sentences for breaking public health rules. Casino executive Rodney Baker and his wife, Ekaterina Baker, an actor, were widely condemned after it emerged that they had chartered a plane to a remote community in the Yukon territory, where they posed as local motel employees to receive the vaccine. Continue reading... |
| ‘Getting tough' on China makes headlines, but abroad nobody cares what Johnson says | Simon Jenkins Posted: 29 Jan 2021 02:00 AM PST Most countries do not feel the need to pontificate about the failings of others. Change comes from within, not without Boris Johnson was last week pressed by senior Conservatives to "take a tougher stance against China" on Uighurs, Hong Kong and human rights. What this means is obscure. A British foreign secretary reaches his office each day amid images of imperial might. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office is a gallery of murals of Pax Britannica, foreign victories, dazzling potentates, cowering enemies and grateful native peoples. By the time the minister's feet are under his desk, he must feel the world is straining for his command. Continue reading... |
| Biden move to refund UN population agency is 'ray of hope for millions' Posted: 29 Jan 2021 02:37 AM PST 'Women's bodies are not political bargaining chips' says UNFPA director, as US funding restored after Trump era The decision by US president Joe Biden to refund the UN population fund, UNFPA, offers "a ray of hope for millions of people around the world", said the agency's executive director. Dr Natalia Kanem said the announcement on Thursday would have an "enormous" impact on the agency's work, particularly as the world continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic. Continue reading... |
| 'Violence starts at home': the Afghan women tackling domestic abuse at its source Posted: 29 Jan 2021 01:30 AM PST A new women-led initiative in Afghanistan is working to break down the barriers to help both victims and perpetrators Nabila felt her diesel-drenched clothes stick to her skin, her lungs filling with fumes, hot panic rising. It hadn't been the first time an argument with her husband had escalated: he'd been beating her throughout their 30-year marriage, even tying her to a tree in the garden outside their small home in Afghanistan's capital Kabul, leaving her freezing in the winter cold. Continue reading... |
| Slavery survivors moved ‘without notice, without reason’ in London lockdown Posted: 28 Jan 2021 11:15 PM PST Despite stay at home orders, vulnerable asylum seekers in Home Office accommodation say they were given as little as a day's notice Modern slavery survivors with young children were among refugees allegedly forced to move accommodation in London with as little as one day's notice during coronavirus lockdowns this winter. Women who are among the UK's most vulnerable refugees and asylum seekers said they were given just 24 hours to pack before being moved from accommodation provided by the Home Office, often having to travel long distances across the capital, in late December and January. Continue reading... |
| Joe Biden axes 'global gag rule' but health groups call on him to go further Posted: 28 Jan 2021 12:39 PM PST President's move to end 'abortion ban' on overseas funding hailed – now aid groups want apology for harmful Trump policies Health groups around the world are celebrating the end of a harmful policy banning US funding for overseas aid organisations that facilitate or promote abortion, which was scrapped by the US president, Joe Biden, in a presidential memorandum on Thursday. Reproductive rights advocates are urging the new administration to now go further and permanently repeal the Mexico City policy – known as the "global gag rule" – to prevent it being reinstated by a future Republican president. The policy has been blamed for contributing to thousands of maternal deaths in the developing world over the past four years. Continue reading... |
| Refugee rights 'under attack' at Europe's borders, UN warns Posted: 28 Jan 2021 04:34 AM PST Agency says violent pushback policies are continuing despite number of arrivals falling by nearly a quarter last year The right to asylum is coming under increasing attack at Europe's borders, the UN's refugee body is warning. UNHCR says it is alarmed by mounting expulsions and pushbacks of refugees and asylum-seekers and is calling for states to urgently investigate and halt increasing violence against people at Europe's land and sea borders. Continue reading... |
| Why has Germany advised against Oxford/AstraZeneca jab for over-65s? Posted: 28 Jan 2021 10:23 AM PST Explainer: Move attributed to 'insufficient data' but experts say no evidence vaccine doesn't work German authorities have advised that the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab should not be given to those aged 65 or above. We take a look at why, and what experts make of it. Why has Germany advised the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab should only be used in adults under 65? Continue reading... |
| Pompeo's exit leaves new secretary of state with task of regaining department's trust Posted: 28 Jan 2021 10:11 AM PST Analysis: Pompeo's replacement, Antony Blinken, has pledged to put experts at the center of diplomacy and listen to dissenting views No statues were toppled at the state department after Mike Pompeo's departure. It was a changing of the guard, rather than regime change. But in one case at least, his legacy was brought down quickly and visibly. On the day of the inauguration, workmen brought down a giant placard about "professional ethos" that the former secretary of state had erected at the main entrance to mark his first year in office. Continue reading... |
| Here in Europe's poorest country we have no vaccine to argue over Posted: 28 Jan 2021 03:00 AM PST Nobody in Moldova has received a Covid jab yet – and our neglected healthcare system is unable to cope "I am happy to work on the frontline and to see the Canadian medical system function so well," Alecu Mătrăgună wrote in a Facebook post, "but I am sad that I was vaccinated before my mother, who works in the medical system in Moldova." Mătrăgună is a Moldovan sonographer living in Montreal. His mother is 61 and a paediatrician with more than 30 years' service under her belt. Yet, he told me, she has no idea when the Covid-19 vaccine might become available for her and for more than 53,300 other healthcare staff in Europe's poorest country. I had a similar reaction to Mătrăgună's about my family in Moldova when I saw a sign at my local London pharmacy as long ago as early December, announcing that the vaccine was on its way. At the time, my grandmother had just recovered and my father was still battling with the effects of the virus. Continue reading... |
| Novavax Covid vaccine nearly 90% effective in UK trial – video Posted: 29 Jan 2021 12:36 AM PST Another Covid vaccine, trialled in the UK and bought by the government, has been shown to be nearly 90% effective and work against the UK and South African variants of the virus. Stanley Erck, CEO of Novavax, has said numbers show 'dramatic demonstrations' of the new vaccine's ability to develop an immune response against different strains of Covid-19. The UK vaccines taskforce has bought 60m doses of the Novavax vaccine which will be manufactured on Teesside in the UK
|
| Kenyan acrobatic troupe trains for post-Covid shows – in pictures Posted: 28 Jan 2021 11:00 PM PST The Mighty Jambo Circus Academy in Nairobi has resumed daily training after months of closure due to coronavirus restrictions Continue reading... |
| 'What were they thinking?': Pelosi slams GOP over Marjorie Taylor Greene committee seat – video Posted: 28 Jan 2021 11:29 AM PST A visibly angry Nancy Pelosi accused Republican leaders of showing disregard to the victims of school shootings after the QAnon-supporting congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene was assigned a seat on the House education committee. Greene has previously suggested the 2018 mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida was a 'false flag' and was filmed harassing a teenage survivor on Capitol Hill in 2019. 'She has mocked the killing of little children,' Pelosi said. 'What could they be thinking? Or is thinking too strong a word for what they might be doing?' Continue reading... |
| You are subscribed to email updates from World news | The Guardian. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States | |
Posting Komentar