by Agence France Presse bureaus WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US drug regulators gave emergency approval to a Covid-19 antibody therapy on Saturday and G20 nations pushed for global access to vaccines as the pandemic led to further closures in parts of the world. With cases surpassing 12 million in the United States, the highest in the world, many Americans were nonetheless heading to airports to travel for next week’s Thanksgiving holiday despite health […]
North America
Pfizer/BioNTech seek first vaccine approval in US
by Ivan Couronne with Yann Schreiber in Mainz Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US biotech giant Pfizer and German partner BioNTech sought approval Friday to roll out their coronavirus vaccine early, a first step towards relief as surging infections prompt a return to shutdowns that traumatized nations and the global economy earlier this year. The world is looking to scientists for salvation from the global pandemic. The US Food and Drug […]
Trump’s son Don Jr positive for Covid-19: spokesman
by Jerome Cartillier Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump’s eldest son Donald Trump Jr has tested positive for Covid-19 and is quarantining without symptoms, the latest in a long list of infections among those with links to the White House. “Don tested positive at the start of the week and has been quarantining out at his cabin since the result,” his spokesman said. “He’s been completely asymptomatic so […]
Trump to take part in virtual APEC summit Friday: US official
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Donald Trump will take part on Friday in the virtual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, a senior US official said, as the president continues to reject the results of this month’s election. The APEC forum, hosted this year by Malaysia but held online because of the Covid-19 pandemic, brings together 21 Pacific Rim countries, accounting for about 60 percent of global GDP. “President Trump will participate in tomorrow’s virtual APEC […]
Biden denounces ‘irresponsible’ Trump fight to reverse election
by Jerome Cartillier with Michael Mathes and Shaun Tandon in Washington Agence France Presse WILMINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday accused Donald Trump of brazenly damaging democracy as the incumbent pressed on with a campaign to reverse his election loss through fraud claims and personal outreach to election authorities. Trump is behind “incredibly damaging messages being sent to the rest of the world about how democracy functions,” Biden told […]
California imposes curfew as COVID-19 cases spike
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — California on Thursday imposed a curfew across much of the state to stem the rapid rise of coronavirus cases. Governor Gavin Newsom said the 10:00 pm to 5:00 am stay-at-home order will take effect Saturday evening and remain in force through December 21. “The virus is spreading at a pace we haven’t seen since the start of this pandemic and the next several days and weeks will be […]
Iota, weakened but deadly, rips through Central America
by AFP bureaus SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AFP) — Storm Iota killed at least ten people as it smashed homes, uprooted trees and swamped roads during its destructive advance across Central America, authorities said, just two weeks after Hurricane Eta devastated parts of the region. Iota, which made landfall in Nicaragua as a “catastrophic” Category 5 hurricane Monday, left six dead in the country, including two children who were trying to cross a river in […]
Pfizer/BioNTech say results show Covid vaccine 95% effective
by Issam Ahmed WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Pfizer and BioNTech said Wednesday a completed analysis of their experimental Covid-19 vaccine found it protected 95 percent of people against the disease and announced they were applying for US emergency approval “within days.” The news from the US pharmaceutical company and its German partner brought further hope to a world upended by the coronavirus pandemic, and follows an announcement last week in which they said a […]
World’s highest lift zips tourists up China’s ‘Avatar’ cliff
by Ludovic EHRET ZHANGJIAJIE, China (AFP) — Towering more than 300 meters (1,000 feet) up the cliff face that inspired the landscape for the blockbuster movie “Avatar”, the world’s highest outdoor lift whisks brave tourists to breathtaking views. The three double-decker elevators in central China’s Zhangjiajie Forest Park zip up the cliff in just 88 seconds, a speedy attraction as domestic tourism slowly recovers in China after the coronavirus forced strict travel measures and lockdowns […]
Trump fires US election security official who rejected fraud claims
by Paul HANDLEY Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Donald Trump on Tuesday fired the government’s top election security official, who had rejected the president’s unsubstantiated claims of “massive” fraud in the vote he lost to Joe Biden. Trump announced on Twitter the termination “effective immediately” of Chris Krebs, who leads the agency that jointly declared “the November 3rd election was the most secure in American history.” Trump, who refuses to acknowledge […]
Pfizer ‘very close’ to applying for US emergency approval, says CEO
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Pfizer is “very close” to applying for an emergency use approval for its Covid-19 vaccine after collecting safety data to submit to US regulators, the company’s CEO said Tuesday, according to a report. The pharmaceutical giant announced last week preliminary results from a late-stage clinical trial showing the injections it had co-developed with Germany’s BioNTech was more than 90 percent effective after the second dose. “We are very close to […]
Iota downgraded to tropical storm after tearing through Nicaragua, Honduras
by Julia RIOS BILWI, Nicaragua (AFP) — Nicaraguans picked through the broken remains of their hurricane-ravaged homes Tuesday, while Iota was downgraded to a tropical storm as it continued its advance across Central America — just two weeks after Hurricane Eta devastated parts of the region. Iota became the only Atlantic hurricane this year to reach Category 5 status — the maximum level on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale — soon before it made landfall in […]





