MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AFP) — More than one million people have died of Covid-19 in Latin America and the Caribbean since the pandemic began, according to an AFP count based on official figures as of Friday at 2105 GMT. The region has also recorded more than 31.5 million infections. More than 90 percent of deaths have been registered in five countries that account for 70 percent of the region’s population: Brazil (446,309 dead), Mexico (221,080), Colombia […]
International
Biden has ‘no illusions’ on difficulty of N.Korea denuclearization
by Sebastian Smith WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Joe Biden acknowledged Friday there is no easy path to getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons but reaffirmed his “iron-clad” commitment to the US alliance with South Korea after talks with President Moon Jae-in. “We’re under no illusions how difficult this is — none whatsoever. The past four administrations have not achieved the objective. It’s an incredibly difficult objective,” Biden told reporters at […]
California on track to reopen by mid-June as Covid eases
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — California is on track to remove nearly all pandemic restrictions by June 15, with no mandatory capacity restrictions or social distancing requirements for those who have been vaccinated, health officials said Friday. The most populous US state suffered a severe winter Covid-19 outbreak, but now has among the nation’s lowest infection rates per capita, in part due to its vaccination program. Some 35.5 million doses have been administered. More […]
Strong quakes rattle two regions of China
BEIJING, China (AFP) — A series of strong earthquakes rattled northwest and southwest China, leaving at least two people dead, local officials and seismologists said early Saturday. Both Qinghai province in the northwest on the Tibetan plateau and Yunnan province in southwestern China are areas prone to earthquakes. And both tremors were shallow, meaning they generally cause more damage. The Yunnan quake, which had a magnitude of 6.1, struck first at 9:48 pm Friday (1348 […]
Norway to ease virus restrictions May 27
OSLO, Norway (AFP) — Norway said Friday it would ease some virus restrictions on May 27, making it easier to serve alcohol in bars and invite guests home as the pandemic seems to be under control. “I’m very happy today that we can see the beginning of the end of the pandemic,” Prime Minister Erna Solberg told reporters. “We’re gradually returning to normal life.” With declining Covid-19 cases and its vaccination campaign progressing, the Nordic […]
Vaccine firms pledge 3.5 billion doses for poorer nations
ROME, Italy (AFP) — Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson told a G20 health summit Friday they will supply around 3.5 billion vaccine doses at cost or discount to middle and low income countries this year and next. Pfizer will deliver two billion doses, Moderna “up to” 995 million doses, and Johnson and Johnson “up to 500 billion doses”, representatives of the three pharmaceutical companies said. © Agence France-Presse
Kyrgyzstan dumps 1,000 vaccine doses after fridge switched off
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AFP) — Kyrgyzstan was forced to dump nearly 1,000 doses of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine after a fridge in a state clinic was unplugged to charge a mobile phone, authorities in the impoverished Central Asian country said. The spoilt vaccines were part of a package of 20,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine donated to ex-Soviet Kyrgyzstan by Russia. Kyrgyzstan began mass vaccinations in March using shots of the Sinopharm vaccine donated […]
France to honor health workers killed by Covid
PARIS, France (AFP) — France will confer a special honour on health workers who die from Covid while fighting the pandemic, President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday. He said a status called “died in the service of the republic” would be created to honour public employees who lose their life “in exceptional circumstances”. A similar “died in the service of the nation” status already exists for police and the military, while “died for France” is […]
Indian states sound Covid ‘black fungus’ alarm as cases surge
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — States across India ordered emergency measures Thursday to counter a surge in the rare deadly “black fungus” infection among coronavirus sufferers. Two new states declared epidemics of Mucormycosis while New Delhi and other major cities have opened special wards to treat thousands of cases of the infection commonly known as black fungus. India normally deals with less than 20 cases a year, but the infection has become a new threat […]
PM Trudeau thanks Iglesia Ni Cristo’s FYM Foundation for humanitarian efforts in Canada
Felix Y. Manalo Foundation delivers 10K Pounds in donations to charities in Canada, plus blood donations (Eagle News) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau thanked the Iglesia Ni Cristo’s Felix Y. Manalo Foundation for its continuing Aid To Humanity in Canada, saying its efforts “play a valuable role in keeping Canadian families safe and healthy” amid the COVID pandemic. He sent this message after the Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC or Church Of Christ) through […]
Spain to allow all vaccinated travelers in from June 7
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Spain will allow all vaccinated travellers to visit the country from June 7, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Friday, as the tourism hotspot aims to revive its virus-battered travel industry. “From June 7, all vaccinated people and their families will be welcome in our country, Spain, regardless of their country of origin,” Sanchez said at an international tourism fair in Madrid. He also announced that British travellers would be allowed to […]
Japan approves Moderna, AstraZeneca vaccines
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan formally approved Moderna and AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccines on Friday, but the latter will not be used immediately because of lingering concern over very rare blood clots. The decision comes just over two months before the pandemic-postponed Olympics, with growing disquiet in Japan about the country’s comparatively slow vaccine rollout. Nine regions including Tokyo are already under a virus state of emergency, with the measure now being expanded to Okinawa in […]





