MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Around 8,000 migrants have arrived in Spain’s north African enclave of Ceuta since Monday, and around half have been sent back to Morocco, the Spanish government said Tuesday. Madrid will send another 50 police officers to the territory, in addition to the 200 already announced, to boost border controls, it added in a statement. “In addition another 150 officers are on alert in case their deployment to Ceuta is needed,” the […]
International
Singapore approves Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for teens
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — Singapore authorized the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine to teenagers aged 12 to 15, officials said on Tuesday, in a first for Asia. The city-state’s Health Sciences Authority extended the use of the vaccine — currently only approved for individuals aged 16 and above — after reviewing clinical data submitted by the manufacturer. Singaporean authorities “assessed that the Pfizer-BioNTech covid-19 vaccine demonstrated high safety and efficacy for this age group […]
33 dead, dozens missing as cyclone batters Covid-stricken India
by Sam Panthaky MAHUVA, India (AFP) — At least 33 people died and more than 90 were missing on Tuesday after a monster cyclone slammed India, compounding the country’s woes as it posted a new record number of coronavirus deaths in 24 hours. The swirling system dubbed Cyclone Tauktae is the latest in what experts say is a growing number of increasingly severe storms in the Arabian Sea as climate change warms its waters. Hundreds […]
Special delivery: man donates $550,000 in cash to Japan city
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — An elderly Japanese man has anonymously donated his life’s savings — in cash — to a city outside of Tokyo, an unexpected financial windfall as the economy reels from the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The man, who did not identify himself, appeared at city hall in Yokosuka on Monday and asked that a backpack with a letter inside be given to the mayor, the official who met him told AFP. […]
Death toll climbs in Israel-Gaza conflict amid UN deadlock
by Sakher Abou El Oun with Ben Simon in Jerusalem GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories (AFP) — Heavy air strikes and rocket fire in the Israel-Gaza conflict claimed more lives on both sides Tuesday as tensions flared in Palestinian “day of anger” protests in Jerusalem and the West Bank. Calls for a ceasefire intensified, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Israel would continue its onslaught on the coastal enclave “as long as necessary,” before a UN […]
Austria to phase out AstraZeneca virus vaccine
VIENNA, Austria (AFP) — Austria will phase out AstraZeneca from its Covid-19 immunization program because of delivery problems and wariness among the population following reports of the vaccine’s rare side effects, the health minister said. Austria becomes the third European country, after Norway and Denmark, to completely drop the AstraZeneca vaccine from its national immunization program over rare cases of severe blood clots in people receiving the jab. “We will probably continue to do first […]
Egypt prioritizing vaccination of tourism workers
by Aziz EL Massassi DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Egypt is prioritizing the vaccination of tourism workers to support the sector’s recovery and is on track to announce full inoculation of two resort areas this month, its tourism minister said Monday. While Egypt’s tourism industry is still reeling from the Covid-19 pandemic, the sector has picked up in recent months, with more visitors heading to resorts along the Red Sea and Mediterranean coasts. “We […]
127 missing after vessel sinks in India cyclone: navy
MUMBAI, India (AFP) — Some 127 people were missing Tuesday after a vessel adrift off Mumbai’s coast sank during Cyclone Tauktae, the Indian navy said as two ships and helicopters were deployed to assist in the search. The vessel was carrying 273 people when it started drifting on Monday as strong winds battered India’s western coast, sending huge waves crashing onto its shores and turning roads into rivers. The defence ministry said 146 people were […]
Israeli strike puts sole Gaza Covid lab out of action: ministry
GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories (AFP) — The Palestinian enclave of Gaza’s only Covid-19 laboratory is no longer able to carry out testing due to an Israeli air strike Monday on the clinic housing it, local authorities said. Al-Rimal clinic, in the town of the same name in the Gaza Strip, was partly destroyed, while the territory’s health ministry and the office of Qatar’s Red Crescent were also hit, officials said. Medical personnel at the […]
Monster cyclone makes landfall in Covid-stricken India
by Sam Panthaky MAHUVA, India (AFP) — A deadly cyclone blasted ashore in western India late Monday with fierce winds and drenching rains that turned streets into rivers, disrupting the country’s response to its devastating Covid-19 outbreak. Cyclone Tauktae, which local press reports called the biggest to hit the area in 30 years, has unleashed heavy weather since the weekend that killed at least 20 people in its approach to land. It made landfall in […]
US military chief warns Israel-Palestinian conflict destabilising ‘beyond Gaza’
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — The United States’ top military officer has warned the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas is creating instability beyond Gaza, saying it is “in no one’s interest to continue fighting”. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, speaking to journalists while flying to Brussels for a NATO meeting, urged both sides in the conflict to de-escalate, echoing comments from President Joe Biden, who has said he backs a […]
Pfizer, Moderna vaccines effective against Indian variants: study
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccines should remain highly effective against two coronavirus variants first identified in India, according to new research carried out by US scientists. The lab-based study was carried out by the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Langone Center and is considered preliminary because it has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal. “What we found is that the vaccine’s antibodies are a little […]





