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by Marc BURLEIGH / Dave CLARK Agence France Presse BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — The European Union warned Thursday that it will ban drugs firms from exporting coronavirus vaccines to the UK and other countries until they make good on their promised deliveries to the bloc. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen’s stark warning — which could hit UK-based AstraZeneca first — came after a video summit of all 27 EU leaders and stoked fears […]
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — California will make all adults eligible for Covid-19 vaccines from April 15, Governor Gavin Newsom said Thursday, as supply restrictions ease in the most populous US state. The announcement means California — home to some 40 million residents — will offer access to all over-16s some two weeks ahead of President Joe Biden’s May 1 deadline. “With vaccine supply increasing and by expanding eligibility to more Californians, the light […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — A fire broke out at an oil terminal in southern Saudi Arabia after it was hit by a projectile, the energy ministry said Friday, the sixth anniversary of a Riyadh-led military intervention in Yemen. “A projectile attack on a petroleum products distribution terminal in Jizan… resulted in a fire in one of the terminal’s tanks,” the ministry said in a statement published by the official Saudi Press Agency, adding that […]
by Farid Farid with AFP bureaus CAIRO, Egypt (AFP) — The owners of a giant container vessel blocking the Suez Canal said Thursday they faced “extreme difficulty” refloating it, as Egypt temporarily closed one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s advisor on seaports, Mohab Mamish, told AFP late Thursday that “maritime navigation will resume again within 48-72 hours, maximum”. “I have experience with several rescue operations of this kind and […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea has tested a new “tactical guided projectile” with a solid-fuel engine, state media said Friday after the nuclear-armed country carried out its first substantive provocation since US President Joe Biden’s inauguration. The North on Thursday launched two weapons from its east coast, with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga calling them ballistic missiles. Pyongyang is under multiple international sanctions over its weapons programmes, with UN Security Council resolutions banning […]
by Jerome Cartillier and Shaun Tandon WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden on Thursday promised 200 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine would be administered in his first 100 days in office, doubling his initial goal, as he said at his first news conference that he intended to seek another term. Biden also said the United States would likely miss a May 1 deadline set by former president Donald Trump to pull all […]
by By Becca Milfeld with Kang Jin-kyu in Seoul Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden warned North Korea Thursday that the United States will “respond accordingly” if it escalates its weapons testing, after Pyongyang fired two suspected ballistic missiles into the sea in its first substantive provocation of the new US administration. The nuclear-armed North has a long history of using weapons tests to ramp up tensions, […]
by Jeremie RICHARD ICELAND (AFP) — A volcanic eruption in Iceland has transformed a tranquil green valley into an ominous-looking scene, its first dark secrets beginning to emerge as volcanologists suggest the eruption could last longer than previously thought. Experts had initially predicted that the eruption of the fissure near Mount Fagradalsfjall, just 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the capital Reykjavik, would be brief, likely dying out after a few days. But due to the […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — New filings for regular unemployment benefits in the United States dropped to 684,000 last week, the government said Thursday, their first reading below 700,000 since the pandemic sparked mass layoffs. The result was much better than analysts forecast and comes as Covid-19 vaccinations offer hope the economy can recover this year — but in a sign of the virus’s ongoing toll, 241,745 new claims were received in the week ended […]
CAIRO, Egypt (AFP) — The owners of a giant container vessel blocking the Suez Canal said Thursday they were facing “extreme difficulty” refloating it, prompting Egypt to suspend navigation through one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. Shipping analysts warned the suspension could last days or even weeks, forcing businesses to consider diverting their cargos to the much longer route round the tip of Africa in a blow to global supply networks. The Suez Canal […]
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Bangladesh police Thursday fired rubber bullets and tear gas at hundreds of mainly student demonstrators who were protesting against an upcoming visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Police said the protest got out of hand as demonstrators marched in the capital Dhaka, with many throwing rocks and stones at officers, injuring at least four. “We fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse them. There were 200 protesters. We have […]
by Chris Lefkow Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Virginia on Wednesday became the first southern US state to abolish the death penalty and the 23rd state in the country to end capital punishment. Democratic Governor Ralph Northam signed legislation repealing the death penalty in Virginia, saying it was “the moral thing to do.” Virginia is the first of the southern states that made up the Confederacy during the 1861-65 US Civil […]
