JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — Israel Sunday widened access to a third coronavirus vaccine jab to anyone aged 12 and up, with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett insisting it was an effective way to contain an infection surge. Moves by several nations to offer third jabs have faced criticism including from the World Health Organization, which insists poorer countries should gain wider access to vaccines before wealthy ones offer booster shots. But with Israel, a country of […]
International
Greek police fire tear gas as 7,000 protest vaccine rules
ATHENS, Greece (AFP) — Around 7,000 people protested in Athens on Sunday against a new rule obliging health workers to get vaccinated against Covid-19, said police who fired teargas to quell violence among the demonstrators. The rule change, which came into effect on Wednesday requires that all personnel working in hospitals be vaccinated. The demonstrators waved Greek flags and brandished placards declaring: “We are not against vaccines, but against fascism” and “Long live democracy”. “It’s […]
In New Orleans, Ida brings trauma of Katrina flooding back
by Daxia ROJAS NEW ORLEANS, United States (AFP) — Chester Lastie clearly recalls Hurricane Katrina, which devastated his neighborhood in eastern New Orleans, 16 years ago to the day. The memories are made all the more vivid by the gusts of wind from Hurricane Ida currently battering his white house. “We were sitting in the yard about 11:00 when the levees broke” on August 29, 2005, he tells AFP. He quickly jumped in his truck […]
URGENT: Blast heard in Afghan capital Kabul: AFP journalists
A loud blast was heard in the Afghan capital Kabul on Sunday by AFP journalists, hours after US officials warned of the possibility of a terror attack. A security official from the recently deposed government told AFP it was a rocket that “initial information shows hit a house”. bur/ecl/jds/fox/axn © Agence France-Presse
Turkey’s Erdogan cool to Taliban securing Kabul airport
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan poured cold water Sunday over a plan in which Turkey operates Kabul airport and the Taliban provides security, adding Ankara would be in a tough position if another attack occurs. Turkey had long planned to help secure and run the Afghan capital’s airport, but appeared to drop the idea when it started Wednesday to withdraw its approximately 500 non-combat troops from Afghanistan. Erdogan on Friday said Turkey had held its first […]
NBA says Covid vaccine required for referees
The NBA said Saturday it will require Covid-19 vaccinations for all referees working games in the 2021-22 season. The league said in a statement that the requirement was agreed with the National Basketball Referees Association. It allows some exemptions for religious or medical reasons. “The referees have also agreed to take any recommended boosters,” the league said. “Any referee who does not get vaccinated and is not exempt will be ineligible to work games.” The […]
Crematorium priest, three others charged with rape, murder of nine-year-old Indian girl
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — A priest and three other men have been charged with the gang rape and murder of a low-caste nine-year-old girl, Indian police said, in a case that sparked days of protests in New Delhi. The girl was allegedly assaulted by the priest, 53, and three workers on August 1 after she had gone to a crematorium to fetch water. The four men, who have been in custody since they […]
Evacuations, fear as Hurricane Ida grows to Category 4 storm
Hurricane Ida was upgraded to a Category Four storm, the US National Hurricane Center said Sunday, staying on course to hit New Orleans with sustained winds of 130 miles per hour (209 kilometers per hour). Sunday, when Ida is due to make landfall, marks 16 years since Katrina, the devastating hurricane that flooded 80 percent of New Orleans, left 1,800 people dead, and caused billions of dollars in damage. “Major Hurricane Ida continues to strengthen… […]
Hurricane Nora makes landfall in Mexico
Hurricane Nora made landfall Saturday near Mexico’s Pacific coastline but no casualties have been reported so far, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. The Category 1 storm made landfall near Tomatlan in Mexico’s Jalisco state and will continue north towards the states of Nayarit and Sinaloa, the National Meteorological Service (SMN) reported. As it passed through Jalisco on Saturday night, the hurricane brought heavy rain that “will likely result in life-threatening flash flooding […]
Japan detects more Moderna vaccine contamination
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s Okinawa region suspended the use of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine on Sunday after another contamination was spotted, the local government said. It comes a day after the Japanese health ministry said it was investigating the death of two men who received shots from tainted Moderna batches — though the cause of their death is unknown. The Okinawa prefecture, in southern Japan, said Sunday’s vaccination programme was partially postponed. “We are suspending […]
Australia’s Melbourne extends sixth virus lockdown
MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) — A lockdown of Australia’s second-biggest city Melbourne will be extended, authorities announced Sunday as they struggle to quash a stubborn coronavirus Delta variant outbreak. Almost seven million people in Melbourne and surrounding Victoria state were scheduled to exit a four-week lockdown on Thursday, but state premier Dan Andrews said it would no longer be possible with case numbers rising by 92 overnight. It is the city’s sixth lockdown of the pandemic, […]
US warns of ‘specific, credible threat’ near Kabul airport
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States warned Saturday of a “specific, credible threat” near Kabul airport and urged its citizens to leave the area, days after a deadly attack on crowds fleeing Taliban rule in Afghanistan. “Due to a specific, credible threat, all US citizens in the vicinity of Kabul airport… should leave the airport area immediately,” the US Embassy in Kabul said in a security alert. © Agence France-Presse





