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by Deborah COLE Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Coronavirus cases in Germany are rising at a “very clearly exponential rate”, a top public health institute said Friday, as the EU’s biggest country debated tightening a shutdown. The vice president of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases, Lars Schaade, told reporters that highly contagious virus variants were getting the upper hand, wiping out progress seen last month in containing the pandemic. […]
by Danny Kemp with AFP Bureaus THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — Leading EU countries said Thursday they would resume AstraZeneca vaccinations after the European medical regulator said the jab is “safe and effective” and not associated with a higher blood clot risk after days of commotion around the shot. The closely-watched announcement from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) came after the WHO and Britain’s health watchdog both said the vaccine was safe, adding that it […]
by Stuart WILLIAMS and Adam PLOWRIGHT PARIS, France (AFP) — French Prime Minister Jean Castex on Thursday announced a limited month-long lockdown for Paris and several other regions to combat surging Covid-19 cases, while insisting the measures would be less strict than in the past. While non-essential businesses will close and movement outside will be restricted in the affected regions, schools will stay open and outdoor exercise allowed up to 10 kilometers (6 miles) from […]
by Isabelle LE PAGE and Deborah COLE Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — An independent study commissioned by the Roman Catholic Church released Thursday has uncovered hundreds of cases of sexual violence allegedly committed by clergy and laymen in Germany’s top diocese. The long-awaited 800-page report on the Cologne diocese found 202 alleged perpetrators of sexual assault and 314 victims between 1975 and 2018, Bjoern Gercke, a lawyer mandated by the Church, told […]
by Danny KEMP THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte claimed an “overwhelming” victory in elections on Wednesday, vowing to use his fourth term in office to rebuild the country after the coronavirus pandemic. Already one of Europe’s longest serving leaders after ten years in office, exit polls showed Rutte’s liberal party clearly winning the most seats in parliament after the socially distanced three-day vote. The pro-EU D66 party, which has challenged […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — France recorded its highest daily number of coronavirus cases in nearly four months on Wednesday, with the hard-hit Paris region bracing for a possible weekend lockdown to stem the rising tide of cases. In the past 24 hours, 38,501 new infections were registered, up from 29,975 the day before, and the highest number since November, the public health authority said. The “positivity” rate — the proportion of positive results compared to […]
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Three cases of people who suffered from thrombosis after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine, one of whom died, are under investigation, Spanish health officials said Wednesday. The announcement by Madrid’s AEMPS medicines agency came two days after the government suspended use of the vaccine for at least a fortnight as a precaution. The three cases happened between late Monday and early Tuesday. “It could be related to the vaccine or not,” Health […]
by Danny Kemp with Agence France Presse bureaus Den Haag, Netherlands (AFP) — The EU’s medicines regulator said Tuesday it was “firmly convinced” the benefits of AstraZeneca’s vaccine outweigh potential risks, insisting there was no evidence linking it to blood clots after several nations suspended the shot over health fears. The suspensions have provoked intense debate over whether it was prudent to put AstraZeneca inoculations on hold just as vaccination campaigns were beginning to gather […]
OSLO, Norway (AFP) — A health worker in Norway has died of a brain haemorrhage after receiving the AstraZeneca anti-Covid vaccine, though no direct link to the jab has been established, health authorities said Monday. This is the second such fatality within a few days in the Nordic country, which had suspended the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine as a precaution last Thursday. On Saturday, Norway’s health authorities said three health care employees had been […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Intensive care doctors in Germany warned Monday that the country would need to make an “immediate return” to partial lockdown if it is to avoid stumbling into a dangerous third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. “From the data we currently have and with the spread of the British mutation, we would argue strongly to return immediately into a lockdown to avoid a strong third wave,” Christian Karagiannidis, director of Germany’s […]
by Agence France Presse Bureaus Coronavirus restrictions were reimposed across much of Italy on Monday, while Ireland and the Netherlands became the latest countries to suspend AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 shots over blood clot fears despite the firm and the WHO insisting there is no risk. More than 350 million vaccine doses have been administered globally so far, and the AstraZeneca shot — among the cheapest available — is crucial to roll-outs in poorer parts of the […]
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — Dutch health officials said they had suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine on Sunday for two weeks after “possible side effects” were reported in Denmark and Norway. “Based on new information, the Dutch Medicines Authority has advised, as a precautionary measure and pending further investigation, to suspend the administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine,” the Health Ministry said in a statement. “The crucial question is whether these are complaints after […]
