International

Israel struck 130 Gaza military targets, 15 ‘operatives’ killed

JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — Israel’s army said Tuesday that it had hit 130 “military targets” in Gaza, killing 15 “Hamas and Islamic Jihad operatives” in retaliatory strikes after Palestinian militant groups launched a flurry of rockets towards Israel. “We have struck 130 military targets belonging mostly to Hamas,” the Islamist group that controls the blockaded Gaza strip, Israeli army spokesman Jonathan Conricus told reporters. “According to our current estimates we have killed 15 Hamas and […]

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Thai police arrest journalists fleeing coup-hit Myanmar

BANGKOK, Thailand (AFP) — Three Myanmar journalists have been arrested in Thailand after fleeing across the border to escape a crackdown by the military junta, their employer has said. The trio were set to appear in court on Tuesday, their editor added, urging Thai authorities not to repatriate them to the coup-hit country. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, triggering a mass uprising […]

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WHO chief slams ‘vaccine diplomacy’ in Covid fight

GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The WHO chief took on so-called “vaccine diplomacy” on Monday, slamming countries for using Covid-19 jabs to gain competitive advantage rather than engaging in true cooperation to end the pandemic. “Vaccine diplomacy is not cooperation,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters from the World Health Organization’s headquarters in Geneva. The UN health agency chief’s was responding to a question about allegations that countries such as Russia and China, which have donated large […]

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Qatar’s emir visits Saudi Arabia as rift eases

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Qatar’s ruler Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani landed in Saudi Arabia for talks Monday, in his second visit since the countries re-established relations in January following a bitter three-year feud. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, received Sheikh Tamim in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, according to images and a statement published by Saudi state media. The visit, which came at the invitation of […]

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India doctors warn of deadly fungal infection in Covid-19 patients

MUMBAI, India (AFP) — A growing number of current and recovered Covid-19 patients in India are contracting a deadly and rare fungal infection, doctors told AFP Monday as the vast nation battles to contain a massive outbreak of virus cases. The world’s second most populous nation on Monday reported nearly 370,000 coronavirus infections to take the overall number of cases to just under 22.7 million, and more than 3,700 new deaths. Experts warn that the […]

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Novavax developing combination flu, Covid vaccine

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US biotech firm Novavax on Monday said it had positive results from preclinical studies of a shot combining its influenza and Covid vaccine candidates. The company said a study, which it has posted to a preprint server and will now undergo peer review, showed that the shot produced strong levels of antibodies against both diseases in ferrets and hamsters. “Despite low rates during the Covid-19 pandemic, influenza remains a significant […]

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US authorizes Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12-15 year olds

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday authorized the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 12 to 15 years old. Acting FDA commissioner Janet Woodcock described the move as a “significant step in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.” “Today’s action allows for a younger population to be protected from Covid-19, bringing us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy and to ending the […]

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New York to drive vaccinations with free subway rides

NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — New Yorkers will receive free train rides if they get vaccinated against Covid-19 in subway stations, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Monday as part of a move to speed up immunizations. Big Apple residents will be able to get a shot of the Johnson & Johnson single dose vaccine in one of six stations that have been selected for a pilot program to run from Wednesday to Sunday. As a […]

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US capital to drop Covid curbs for most businesses on May 21

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Washington is to lift pandemic restrictions on most businesses and public venues in less than two weeks, with the daily toll of new Covid-19 cases in the US capital at its lowest level in almost a year. As the vaccination drive gathers pace, the city’s famed Smithsonian museums and zoo — as well as shops, restaurants, places of worship and numerous other venues — will see capacity curbs removed entirely […]

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Spain urges responsibility as parties mark curfew’s end

by Marie GIFFARD MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Spain’s government on Monday urged people to act “responsibly”, stressing that health restrictions remain in place after crowds celebrated the end of a state of emergency over the weekend without masks or social distancing. “The end of the state of emergency does not mean the end of restrictions. Far from it. The virus threat still exists,” Justice Minister Juan Carlos Campo wrote in an opinion piece in El […]

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WHO says Covid variant in India ‘of concern’

by Nina LARSON GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — A Covid-19 variant spreading in India, which is facing an explosive outbreak, appears to be more contagious and has been classified as being “of concern”, the World Health Organization said Monday. The UN health agency said the B.1.617 variant of Covid-19 first found in India last October seemed to be transmitting more easily. “There is some available information to suggest increased transmissibility of the B.1.617,” Maria Van Kerkhove, […]

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Italian woman gets six doses of Pfizer vaccine in error

  ROME, Italy (AFP) — A 23-year-old Italian woman was under observation in a hospital in Tuscany after receiving six doses of the Pfizer vaccine in error, news agency AGI reported Monday. The woman was in good condition after receiving fluids and paracetamol following the injection Sunday, AGI reported. Instead of injecting just one dose into the arm of the student, a nurse mistakenly injected the entire vial, the equivalent of six doses. Previous studies […]

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