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by Danny KEMP Agence France Presse THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — The European Union on Monday authorised the Moderna coronavirus jab, giving the bloc a second vaccine and a shot in the arm after a slow start to its bid to protect its 450 million residents. The sluggish rollout of the first vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech has drawn widespread criticism, as many of the bloc’s 27 countries battle surging infection rates. The European Commission […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Roughly one in a hundred thousand people who received the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine have had severe allergic reactions, US health officials said Wednesday while stressing that the benefits of immunization greatly outweigh the known risks. The data comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which documented 21 cases of anaphylaxis after administration of a reported 1,893,360 shots from December 14 to December 23. “This averages out to […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China reported 63 new Covid-19 infections on Thursday — the highest single-day tally since July — as authorities try to stamp out an outbreak of the virus in a city of 11 million near Beijing. The virus first emerged in central China in late 2019, but since then authorities have largely brought the situation under control through travel restrictions, strict lockdowns and mass testing. But a recent outbreak in northern Hebei […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s government will declare a coronavirus state of emergency in the greater Tokyo area on Thursday, hoping the month-long measure can bring a surging wave of infections under control. The new restrictions will be far less strict than harsh lockdowns seen in other parts of the world, and will be softer even than the first state of emergency implemented in Japan last spring. For now, it will affect Tokyo and three […]
MONTREAL, Canada (AFP) — The premier of Quebec, Francois Legault, on Wednesday ordered the first pandemic curfew in Canada, as part of new lockdown measures to slow the spread of a second wave of Covid-19. The lockdown and 8:00 pm to 5:00 am (0100 to 1000 GMT) curfew will take effect starting Saturday and last four weeks, Legault told a news conference. © Agence France-Presse
by Beiyi Seow and Jing Xuan Teng BEIJING, China (AFP) — An expert mission to China to probe the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic was in disarray Wednesday after Beijing denied entry to the World Health Organization team at the last minute despite months of painstaking negotiations. Ten experts were due to arrive in China this week for the delicate, highly politicized task of establishing how and where the virus jumped from animals to humans. […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Travel has been restricted to a northern Chinese city of 11 million people and schools closed as authorities Wednesday moved to snuff out a cluster of Covid-19 after dozens were infected. Ten major highways leading into the city of Shijiazhuang, around 300 kilometers (200 miles) south of Beijing, have been closed and a bus terminus was closed in an attempt to prevent the virus from spreading beyond the city in Hebei […]
TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran confirmed Tuesday its first case of a new Covid-19 variant first detected in Britain, as daily deaths dropped below 100 for the first time in over six months. “Sadly, the first instance of the mutated British Covid-19 was detected in one of our compatriots who had arrived from England,” Health Minister Saeed Namaki said in a televised address. The patient was admitted to “a private hospital, and our extensive […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Under mounting pressure to speed up coronavirus vaccinations, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday said he would not take “unnecessary risks” and emulate Britain’s emergency drug approval. While vaccinations are already well underway in many countries, Australia’s pharmaceutical authority is not expected to rule on candidate drugs for around another month, and is aiming to administer the first doses by the end of March. Pressed about that seemingly sluggish timetable, […]
by Deborah COLE BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel and state leaders are expected Tuesday to extend a shutdown in Europe’s top economy as coronavirus deaths continue to mount despite tough restrictions in the run-up to the holidays. After Germany’s daily deaths surpassed the 1,000-mark for the first time on December 30, pressure escalated to slow the spread of the disease which has claimed more than 34,000 lives. Merkel and the premiers of […]
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — Mexico on Monday authorized the coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford for emergency use in the country, which has one of the world’s highest Covid-19 death tolls. Deputy health minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell announced on Twitter that Mexican regulators had approved the vaccine, which has also been authorized by Britain, India and Argentina. Lopez-Gastell said the vaccine could be available in March. “It depends on the private […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Nearly 56 million people in England will return to a full coronavirus lockdown, possibly until mid-February, to try to cut spiralling infection rates, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday. The measures, which include the closure of primary and secondary schools, will come into effect Wednesday, he said in a televised address, after Scotland announced similar measures would come into force from midnight (0000 GMT) on Tuesday. Some 44 million […]
