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Archives – 2020
Week of June 27th to July 3rd, 2021:
Russia on Saturday reported 697 coronavirus-related deaths, the most confirmed in a single day since the pandemic began and the fifth day in a row it has set that record. The government coronavirus taskforce also confirmed 24,439 new coronavirus cases nationwide, the most it has reported since early January.
A Tel Aviv University (TAU) team has created a revolutionary method to deliver drugs to diseased cells while leaving the healthy ones alone. Not only did it equal or surpass current medications, but there were no side effects that occur when a drug is indiscriminately introduced into the body.
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) issued a fervent apology on Sunday to Muslim and Palestinian members over a recent condemnation of anti-Semitism because "it did not discuss Islamophobia", and announced the resignation of the diversity officer who had posted the message.
The U.K. recorded 18,270 new coronavirus infections – the highest daily rise since 5 February – and 23 deaths. Cases have been rising in Britain for the last month.
The U.S. State Department has denied that the Biden administration is planning to change its policy regarding the Golan Heights following recognition of Israel's sovereignty of the area under the Trump administration. Former U.S. officials and Republican congressmen, including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, expressed concern that the United States could rescind its recognition.
Week of June 20th to June 26th, 2021:
A letter signed by 73 Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives calls on U.S. President Joe Biden to "reverse" the Trump administration's pro-Israel policies, including his peace plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel says Europe is "on thin ice" in its battle against the coronavirus, as the highly contagious delta variant threatens to undo progress made in reducing infections.
Honduras has become the fourth country to open an embassy in Israel's capital, Jerusalem. Serbia, Malawi and the Dominican Republic have previously announced their intentions to open embassies in the Israeli capital. Meanwhile, the Biden Administration is quietly walking back the U.S. recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Dr. Robert Malone, the inventor of the mRNA technology that went into some of the current COVID-19 vaccines told Fox News on Wednesday that Google-owned YouTube deleted a posting of a podcast during which he discussed his concerns and negative findings.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday it plans to move quickly to add a warning about rare cases of heart inflammation in adolescents and young adults to fact sheets for the Pfizer/BioNTech (PFE.N), and Moderna (MRNA.O) COVID-19 vaccines.
Between 2018 and 2020, average life expectancy at birth in the U.S. decreased by 1.9 years — 8.5 times the average decrease in 16 comparable countries. The U.S. birth rate fell 4 percent last year, the largest single-year decrease in nearly 50 years.
Outgoing Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's chief of staff said Wednesday that as part of the ongoing nuclear deal talks taking place in Vienna, Washington has agreed to lift more than 1,000 sanctions from the Trump era. Iran has consistently failed to comply with requirements outlined in the current international agreement, which failure resulted in the sanctions.
After being vilified in the mainstream press, and banned in a number of countries, the University of Oxford said on Wednesday it was testing anti-parasitic drug Ivermectin as a possible treatment for COVID-19, as part of a British government-backed study that aims to aid recoveries in non-hospital settings. Informal studies have shown that the drug is one of the most effective treatments against the coronavirus.
After the Palestinian Authority rejected the transfer of some 1.4 million coronavirus vaccines from Israel, complaining that the doses were too close to their expiration date, the Jewish state is using those same vaccines on its adolescent citizens.
While cases are declining in many countries across the world, they are surging in Russia, South Africa and Colombia.
Researchers at the Institute of Hematology at Tel Aviv's Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center said they found a "chronological connection" between the Pfizer vaccine and TTP, an autoimmune disease that causes blood clots, which interfere with the flow of oxygen to crucial organs.
Israel is negotiating with three countries that have expressed interest in acquiring around one million doses of the Covid vaccine rejected by the Palestinian Authority. The three countries interested in the vaccines were not disclosed.
The Israeli Health Ministry on Saturday categorically rejected Palestinian Authority (PA) claims that the Covid-19 vaccines it had sent to Ramallah on Friday were not up to proper health standards. "The Palestinian Health Ministry received Pfizer vaccines that were valid, with expiration dates that were known, agreed on and that matched the agreement between the two sides," the ministry said in a statement.
Uganda's president Yowreri Museveni on Friday introduced sweeping new anti-coronavirus measures including a ban on all vehicular movement except for essential workers to help curb a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic gripping the nation.
Vitamin-D, which is produced naturally in the human body after exposure to sunlight, could be key in preventing complications from the coronavirus, according to an Israeli study published this week. The study, conducted at the Galilee Medical Center, has revealed that one out of every four people hospitalized with COVID-19 in the Jewish state was Vitamin-D deficient.
Week of June 13th to June 19th, 2021:
U.S. wholesale prices, driven by rising food costs, increased by an unprecedented amount over the past year. Food prices jumped a sizable 2.6% for the month of May alone. Over the past 12 months, wholesale prices are up 6.6%, the largest 12-month increase on records going back to 2010.
Uganda: Both private and public medical facilities in the capital, Kampala and in towns across the country – including regional hubs in Entebbe, Jinja, Soroti, Gulu and Masaka – have reported running out or having acute shortages of AstraZeneca vaccines and oxygen. Hospitals report they are no longer able to admit patients to intensive care.
The first results from a large efficacy study of a new COVID-19 vaccine are now out, and they are very good. According to Novavax, the vaccine's manufacturer, it had a 100% efficacy against the original strain of the coronavirus and 93% efficacy against more worrisome variants that have subsequently appeared. The Novavax vaccine is what's known as a protein subunit vaccine, which does not invade healthy cells like mRNA vaccines.
A Covid-19 strain known as Delta is in at least 60 countries including the U.S. and is likely to spread world-wide.
Europe's drug regulator on Friday identified another very rare blood condition as a potential side effect of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine and said it was looking into cases of heart inflammation after inoculation with all coronavirus shots. Researchers determined that the incidence of myocarditis in vaccinated young men was fully 25 times the usual rate. Results of this research were initially banned by YouTube, but are now being reviewed by the CDC.
Israel is concerned by reports that Russia will provide Iran with a modern satellite for intelligence and collection purposes. Security sources in Israel stressed that the move would be an improvement in Iranian capabilities and provide it with an unprecedented ability to track Israeli bases, strategic targets and other targets in the Middle East. Russian President Vladimir Putin denied the reports.
In a decision that appalled and angered Syrian opposition groups and international medical organizations, on May 28 Syria was appointed to the [WHO] World Health Organization's Executive Board, made up of 34 member states. The latest incident occurred on Saturday when a hospital was hit by Syrian-backed forces in rebel-held Afrin, killing 18 people.
U.S. consumer prices (CPI) continued to climb strongly in May, surging 5% from a year ago to reach the highest annual inflation rate in nearly 13 years, well above the prior month's 4.2% rate and the 4.6% expected. Some categories increased more than others. Used-car prices soared 29.7% over last year. Average home values have gone up 13.2% compared to last year. Gasoline rose 9.1% in May alone. Food costs have risen sharply in June, a change not reflected in the most recent CPI.
Hundreds of thousands of medical workers across the U.S. are being told they must get vaccinated against COVID-19 to stay employed, with New York-Presbyterian — one of the country's largest hospital systems — the latest to announce the move. Currently more than 25% of medical workers are not vaccinated.
Week of June 6th to June 12th, 2021:
Houston Methodist Hospital is sidelining almost 200 workers for two weeks without pay for refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The suspensions come a day after dozens protested the policy outside one of its medical centers in Baytown, Texas.
Scientists are concerned that measures to combat Covid-19 have weakened the immune systems of young children who have not been able to build up resistance to common bugs, leaving them vulnerable when mask-wearing and social distancing eventually end.
Indian authorities have lifted COVID-19 restrictions in 72 of the 75 districts across the state. What's behind this turnaround is controversial in that a population-wide public health scheme included ivermectin-based home medicine kits. The World Health Organization noted that "aggressive population-wide health schemes, including home testing and 'medicine kits,' made this turnaround possible" but did not mention that ivermectin was included in those kits.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provide detailed statistics on their official government website, including death rates related to vaccines. Based on the number of people fully vaccinated, the death rate from flu vaccines is 0.173 per million, and the death rate from COVID vaccines is 22.6 per million or 130 times higher.
A new Protein subunit COVID-19 vaccine could be available as soon as this summer. This kind of vaccine has been around for a while. For example: there are vaccines on the market for hepatitis B and pertussis based on this technology. Proteins in the vaccine evoke an immune response without entering healthy cells. The first protein subunit COVID-19 vaccine to become available will likely come from the biotech company, Novavax.
India reported 114,460 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, the lowest in two months, as parts of the country prepared to ease movement restrictions.
The Biden State Department discourages employees from referring to the peace agreements signed by Israel and its Arab neighbors by its official name, the Abraham Accords, the Washington Free Beacon reported on Friday. According to the report, the name has also been erased from a wide array of official State Department communications.
Israeli health expert Prof. Yehuda Adler says that Israel achieved herd immunity with only 60% of the population vaccinated against the coronavirus.
29-May-2021 Latest from Romania: [WAITING] The number of new infections was 265 compared to 321 yesterday; deaths were 73 compared to 43 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 452 compared to 459 yesterday.
29-May-2021 SUMMARY: No news is good news? COVID articles on the Home Page of major news sites were primarily about the lifting of restrictions.
28-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 321 compared to 307 yesterday; deaths were 43 compared to 39 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 459 compared to 485 yesterday.
28-May-2021 SUMMARY: India continues to be the worst affected country while most other countries have the virus largely under control. Consequently, most COVID news is either repetitious or not relevant for purposes of this blog. One exception is Ukraine where a large number of Bible Students were infected when attending a recent funeral.
27-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 307 compared to 379 yesterday; deaths were 39 compared to 53 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 485 compared to 493 yesterday.
26-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 379 compared to 381 yesterday; deaths were 53 compared to 63 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 493 compared to 545 yesterday.
25-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 381 compared to 230 yesterday; deaths were 63 compared to 36 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 545 compared to 580 yesterday.
25-May-2021 What's next for coronavirus vaccine development? Latest research focuses on (1) creating distinct protein molecules common to all coronaviruses that could attract virus-killing antibodies and (2) custom-made nanoparticles studded with viral fragments from a number of different varieties.
25-May-2021 Senior Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar, who helped found the Iran-backed terror group in Gaza, said that while he thinks the recent ceasefire will hold, his organization remains totally committed to replacing Israel with a Palestinian state, Sky News reported Monday.
24-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 230 compared to 307 yesterday; deaths were 36 compared to 56 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 580 compared to 590 yesterday.
24-May-2021 "Israel is going back to normal," Israeli Health Minister Yuli Edelstein declared. "Less than half a year ago we started the vaccination campaign. Thanks to the excellent work of the health system…and thanks to the amazing mobilization of Israeli citizens, we have carried out the best vaccination campaign in the world." All restrictions on gatherings will be lifted next Tuesday.
24-May-2021 Three researchers from China's Wuhan Institute of Virology became sick enough in November 2019 that they sought hospital care, according to a previously undisclosed U.S. intelligence report that could add weight to growing calls for a fuller probe of whether the Covid-19 virus may have escaped from the laboratory.
24-May-2021 The number of deaths linked to Covid-19 in India has moved past the 300,000 mark as the country continues to grapple with the pandemic. Experts warn that the real number of fatalities might be much higher, as many deaths are not officially recorded. India has recorded 26 million cases – second only to the US – and is now the epicentre of the global pandemic.
23-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 307 compared to 455 yesterday; deaths were 56 compared to 59 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 590 compared to 623 yesterday.
23-May-2021 A double dose of COVID-19 vaccines is almost as effective against the fast-spreading variant of the coronavirus first identified in India as it is against Britain's dominant strain, English health officials said on Saturday.
23-May-2021 More than 125,000 school teachers in Myanmar have been suspended by the military authorities for joining a civil disobedience movement to oppose the military coup in February, an official of the Myanmar Teachers' Federation said. The suspensions have come days before the start of a new school year
22-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 455 compared to 484 yesterday; deaths were 59 compared to 49 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 623 compared to 636 yesterday.
22-May-2021 India on Saturday reported 257,299 new coronavirus infections over the last 24 hours, while deaths rose by 4,194. Total infections in the country stood at 26.3 million while the country's total death toll was at 295,525, according to data from the health ministry.
22-May-2021 Covid infection levels are showing early signs of an increase in England, data has revealed, as experts continue to warn the variant of concern first detected in India could grow exponentially in the UK.
22-May-2021 Israel and the Iran-backed terror groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad entered into another Egyptian-brokered "ceasefire" early Friday morning, but U.S. President Joe Biden appeared to falsely claim that his administration was responsible. In Jerusalem, Netanyahu noted that it was not Washington, but Cairo that had brokered the arrangement.
21-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 484 compared to 618 yesterday; deaths were 49 compared to 61 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 636 compared to 663 yesterday.
21-May-2021 Dogs are better at detecting Covid-19 in humans than many fast lateral flow tests (LFTs), according to a French study which could see canines more widely deployed for mass virus screening in crowded places including airports.
21-May-2021 Israel's security cabinet unanimously approved a ceasefire late Thursday evening, after 11 days of fighting the Hamas terror organization in Gaza. The understandings were reached through mediation with the Egyptians. A Hamas official says it still has its "hands on the trigger."
21-May-2021 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed Thursday that the drone which was shot down over Emek HaMaayanot earlier this week was an Iranian drone which crossed into Israeli territory from Jordan. According to Netanyahu, the drone was launched either from Syria or Iraq.
21-May-2021 In this fourth war between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers, the Islamic militant group has fired more than 4,000 rockets at Israel, some hitting deeper in Israeli territory and with greater accuracy than ever before. Hamas, a U.S. designated terrorist organization, has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007 and acquires weapons and other assistance from Iran.
20-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 618 compared to 707 yesterday; deaths were 61 compared to 54 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 663 compared to 718 yesterday.
20-May-2021 Ambassadors from the 27 European Union countries agreed on Wednesday that restrictions for travelers from outside the E.U. should be eased, in particular for those vaccinated against Covid-19, a spokesperson for the European Commission said. Up to now, a "safe list" consisted of only seven nations — Australia, Israel, New Zealand, Rwanda, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand.
19-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 707 compared to 681 yesterday; deaths were 54 compared to 91 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 718 compared to 716 yesterday. The nightly curfew has now been lifted nationwide, as well as the requirement to wear masks in open areas.
19-May-2021 India has suffered a world record one-day death toll, surpassing the previous highest toll, recorded in the U.S., of 4,475. According to the health ministry, 4,529 people were confirmed dead in the last 24 hours. It is the highest daily toll of any country on earth over the course of the pandemic and the first time India has seen a figure over 4,500.
19-May-2021 France is taking steps to ease the lockdown measures allowing cafes and restaurant terraces to open to 50% capacity, rolling back the nightly curfew to 9pm and reopening non-essential shops and cultural venues.
19-May-2021 India's total COVID-19 caseload surged past 25 million on Tuesday as a powerful cyclone complicated the health crisis in the western states of Gujarat and Maharashtra, already among the hardest hit by a second wave of the pandemic.
19-May-2021 In the U.S. COVID-19 deaths are falling as 16 states reported no deaths on Monday. This is the third week in a row when new cases decreased globally. Nevertheless, the second year of the pandemic is projected to be more deadly than the first.
19-May-2021 The Serum Institute of India (SII), the world's biggest vaccine maker producing the AstraZeneca (AZN.L) vaccine, is unlikely to resume major exports of COVID-19 vaccines until at least October.
19-May-2021 ISRAEL GAZA CONFLICT:
After stating publicly that he "had not seen any information" to support the Israeli strike on a high-rise building in Gaza, Secretary of State Blinken now says that Israel had, in fact, given information proving the claim that the building was used by Hamas. It also housed the Associated Press and Al Jazeera news agencies.
International rights lawyer Arsen Ostrovsky tweeted: "Right now, they [Hamas] are repeatedly bombing Kerem Shalom, which is [the] main commercial crossing from Israel into Gaza. Even as Israel [is] trying to bring in critical humanitarian aid into the Strip, Hamas are bombing it.
The Israel Police and Shin Bet intelligence agency announced on Monday the arrest of an Arab-Israeli man in his 20s on suspicion of hurling a firebomb that seriously injured an Arab-Israeli child in Jaffa last Friday. The attack was initially reported in the international press to have been carried out by Jewish Israelis. The police investigation led to an Arab-Israeli suspect, who apparently believed he was targeting a Jewish home.
Approximately 20% of rockets fired from Gaza toward Israel land in the Gaza Strip itself. In addition, Israel's Iron Dome does not try to destroy rockets that are headed toward unpopulated areas.
18-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 681 compared to 392 yesterday; deaths were 91 compared to 48 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 716 compared to 753 yesterday.
18-May-2021 A new vaccine, under development by Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline, two of the world's largest vaccine makers before the pandemic, is based on a proven technology, unlike the other leading vaccine candidates. In a press release issued early Monday morning in Paris, the two companies said that a 722-subject Phase 2 study of an updated version of their vaccine elicited what it called "strong" levels of neutralizing antibodies after two doses across all age groups.
18-May-2021 Hamas militants continue to fire rockets into southern Israel. Israel says the concentration of rocket fire in the past week has been the highest ever. Heavy barrages of rocket fire by the Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror groups sped toward the southern cities of Ashdod and Ashkelon and the surrounding towns and farming communities. [Israel at the U.N.]
18-May-2021 Independent observers have rejected claims of voter fraud in Myanmar's 2020 election, three months after the military took power in a coup. The Asian Network for Free Elections said the outcome of the vote was "by and large, representative of the will of the people of Myanmar". The military has justified its February coup by alleging massive voter fraud, but provided no evidence. The election observers' report described the military's decision to ignore the election results as "indefensible."
17-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 392 compared to 565 yesterday; deaths were 48 compared to 38 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 753 compared to 777 yesterday.
17-May-2021 India reported a further decline in new coronavirus cases, but daily deaths remained above 4,000. World Health Organization chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan pointed to the "very high" national positivity rate of about 20% as a sign that there could be worse to come. It is widely accepted that the official figures grossly underestimate the real impact of the epidemic, with some experts saying actual infections and deaths could be five to 10 times higher.
17-May-2021 The United Arab Emirates is demanding "complete calm" from the Hamas terror organization in order for UAE investments in Gaza to move forward. "We are still ready and willing to promote civil projects in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority and under UN management [in Gaza], but our necessary condition is calm," said an unnamed UAE official. "If Hamas does not commit to complete calm, it is dooming the residents of the Strip to a life of suffering. Its leaders must understand that their policies are first and foremost hurting the people of Gaza," the official said.
16-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 565 compared to 729 yesterday; deaths were 38 compared to 72 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 777 compared to 784 yesterday.
16-May-2021 India reported a smaller rise in daily COVID-19 cases for the third straight day on Sunday, but the number of deaths in 24 hours was higher than 4,000, taking the country's death toll to 270,000. Deaths grew by 4,077, while infections rose by 311,170 – the smallest rise in daily cases in over three weeks, health ministry data showed on Sunday.
16-May-2021 COVID-19 vaccine developers are making ever bolder assertions that the world will need yearly booster shots, or new vaccines to tackle concerning coronavirus variants, but some scientists question when, or whether, such shots will be needed. In interviews with Reuters, more than a dozen influential infectious disease and vaccine development experts said there is growing evidence that a first round of global vaccinations may offer enduring protection against the coronavirus and its most worrisome variants discovered to date.
15-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 729 compared to 809 yesterday; deaths were 72 compared to 105 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 784 compared to 809 yesterday.
15-May-2021 India reported on Saturday 326,098 new coronavirus infections over the prior 24 hours, taking its tally to 24.37 million, while deaths showed a slight fall, to 3,890. Over the past week, the south Asian nation has added about 1.7 million new cases and more than 20,000 deaths. Its death toll stands at 266,207, health ministry data shows.
15-May-2021 More than 350 of the rockets fired from the Gaza Strip toward Israel fell into their own territory. A number of deaths and casualties suffered in the Palestinian controlled area were from their own armaments.
14-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 809 compared to 953 yesterday; deaths were 105 compared to 75 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 809 compared to 829 yesterday.
14-May-2021 More than 150 million infections have been reported worldwide, and the death toll is above 3 million, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University. The United States has far more COVID cases and deaths than any other country. India and Brazil have the second and third highest tally of cases respectively.
14-May-2021 Andreas Greinacher, a blood expert, and his team at the University of Greifswald believe so-called viral vector vaccines, which use modified harmless cold viruses, known as adenoviruses, to convey genetic material into vaccine recipients to fight the coronavirus, could cause an autoimmune response that leads to blood clots.
14-May-2021 Fully vaccinated people don't need to wear a mask or physically distance during outdoor or indoor activities, large or small, U.S. federal health officials said, the broadest easing of pandemic recommendations so far.
14-May-2021 Amid constant rocket fire from Gaza, Israel's military said it has begun ground operations against Hamas in Gaza, escalating its offensive against the militant group. Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, an Israeli military spokesman, said ground and air forces are striking targets in Gaza from the Israeli side of the border, including tanks and artillery.
14-May-2021 Colonial Pipeline Co. paid a ransom to the criminal hackers who caused the company to shut down the country's largest conduit of fuel, according to people familiar with the matter, a payment that allowed the firm to obtain decryption tools to try to unlock its computer systems. The ransom, paid in cryptocurrency, was approximately $5 million at the time of the transaction, one of the people familiar with the matter said.
13-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 953 compared to 930 yesterday; deaths were 75 compared to 98 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 829 compared to 874 yesterday.
13-May-2021 India recorded more than 4,000 COVID-19 deaths for a second straight day on Thursday, while infections stayed below 400,000 for a fourth day, though the virus has become rampant in rural areas where cases can go unreported due to a lack of testing.
13-May-2021 Covid-19 deaths in the U.S. have tumbled to an average of around 600 per day — the lowest level in 10 months — with the number of lives lost dropping to single digits in well over half the states and hitting zero on some days. Confirmed infections, meanwhile, have fallen to about 38,000 a day on average, their lowest mark since mid-September, down 85 percent from a peak of more than a quarter-million cases per day in early January.
13-May-2021 The Covid pandemic was a preventable disaster that need not have cost millions of lives if the world had reacted more quickly, according to an independent high-level panel, which castigates global leaders and calls for major changes to bring it to an end and ensure it cannot happen again. The report of the panel, chaired by the former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a former president of Liberia, found "weak links at every point in the chain".
13-May-2021 ISRAEL: Rocket attacks from Gaza continue unabated with additional civilian deaths and injuries reported. Thousands of rockets have been launched against Israel in recent days, many being intercepted by Iron Dome defense missiles, but some have landed on homes. An oil facility in Ashkelon continues to burn after a direct hit. The main airport in Tel Aviv has been closed periodically. Combat troops along the Gaza border are in "various stages of preparing ground operations", a military spokesman said. Two members of an Arab family in Israel were killed by a Palestinian rocket fired from Gaza.
13-May-2021 U.S.: The major artery I-40 has been closed, and barge traffic has been suspended, at the Mississippi River near Memphis after a "major fracture" in a main supporting steel girder was discovered. The potentially catastrophic situation could take weeks to resolve. The biggest impact economically will come as a result of the suspension of river traffic.
12-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 930 compared to 1,156 yesterday; deaths were 98 compared to 101 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 874 compared to 919 yesterday.
12-May-2021 Sad news from India, as additional reports have been received of deaths and serious illness due to COVID among Bible Students there. India officials said on Wednesday that a record number of people were killed by the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, pushing its overall death toll to more than a quarter million. Experts believe the official numbers grossly underestimate the real scale of the epidemic's impact, and actual deaths and infections could be five to ten times higher.
12-May-2021 As the coronavirus outbreak recedes in many parts of the U.S., a "fourth wave" has filled hospitals in the metro areas around Seattle and Portland. In recent weeks, the governors of OR and WA have hit the brakes on reopening plans in hopes of countering the rapid spread of the more contagious U.K. variant of the coronavirus. In Washington state, new hospital admissions for COVID-19 have been higher during this current surge than at any other time, except for this past winter.
12-May-2021 The Canadian provinces of Alberta and Ontario said on Tuesday they would stop offering first doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine, with Ontario citing evidence that the risk of rare blood clots is somewhat higher than previously estimated.
12-May-2021 Explosions shook central Israel Tuesday night as scores of Iron Dome rockets launched to intercept a barrage of 130 rockets fired by Palestinian terrorists in Gaza at the most heavily populated part of the country. The rockets were fired at Tel Aviv and surrounding area, with direct hits in two cities. Deaths and injuries have been reported. This follows the more than 200 rockets fired at civilian areas on Monday. Arab rioters in Israel have fired on Israeli forces with automatic weapons.
12-May-2021 Israeli-based political experts believe that the Biden Administration's policy reversals on Israel have essentially sent a "green light" to Palestinian terrorists to escalate rocket attacks and rioting. They cite recent communications between Biden and PA leader Abbas; restoration of hundreds of millions of dollars in US funding to the PA; reopening of the PLO mission in Washington, D.C.; etc.
11-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,156 compared to 620 yesterday; deaths were 101 compared to 68 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 919 compared to 962 yesterday.
11-May-2021 India's coronavirus crisis showed scant sign of easing on Tuesday, with a seven-day average of new cases at a record high and international health authorities warning the country's variant of the virus poses a global concern.
11-May-2021 US regulators on Monday authorized Pfizer and its partner BioNTech's Covid vaccine for use in children as young as 12, widening the country's inoculation program even as vaccination rates have slowed significantly.
11-May-2021 Terrorists in Gaza fired over 200 rockets at civilian areas of Israel overnight with at least two rockets evading the missile defense system and exploding in two residential buildings early Tuesday in the coastal city of Ashkelon, injuring seven Israelis. Rocket fire from Gaza continues on Tuesday. Palestinians escalated their rioting on the Temple Mount, while the U.S. and Arab governments blame Israel for the violence. Rioters set a huge fire on the Temple Mount on Monday night. The Western Wall Plaza had to be evacuated.
11-May-2021 The biggest U.S. gasoline pipeline will not resume full operations for several more days due to a ransomware cyberattack blamed on a shadowy criminal network called DarkSide. The attack on the Colonial Pipeline, which carries nearly half the fuel consumed along the U.S. East Coast, is one of the most disruptive digital ransom schemes ever reported.
10-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 620 compared to 857 yesterday; deaths were 68 compared to 63 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 962 compared to 984 yesterday.
10-May-2021 India has put vaccine distribution to other countries on hold as the country battles the world's fastest-growing Covid-19 surge. The delay in distribution is hampering the global vaccination effort. The crisis there highlights how one country's surge could have ripple effects in the global battle against the pandemic.
10-May-2021 The US is approaching a turning point where Covid vaccinations are sharply reducing infection and hospitalization rates, key figures in the fight against the disease said on Sunday. The daily load of new Covid cases has plummeted with the advent of vaccines in the US, from a seven-day average of more than 250,000 per day in January to the current average of about 43,000.
10-May-2021 Calls grew for India to impose a nationwide lockdown as new coronavirus cases and deaths held close to record highs on Monday, increasing pressure on the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 366,161 new infections and 3,754 deaths reported by the health ministry were lower than recent peaks, taking India's tally to 22.66 million with 246,116 deaths.
10-May-2021 Myanmar poet Khet Thi, whose works declare resistance to the ruling junta, has died in detention and his body was returned with the organs removed, his family said. "He died at the hospital after being tortured in the interrogation centre," the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners activist group said in a bulletin that put the toll of civilians killed since the coup at 780.
10-May-2021 The US government declared a state of emergency on Sunday after the largest fuel pipeline in the US was hit by a ransomware cyber-attack that forced the company to shut a critical fuel network supplying populous eastern states. Retail fuel experts including the American Automobile Association said an outage lasting several days could have significant impacts on regional fuel supplies, particularly in the southeastern United States.
09-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 857 compared to 1,305 yesterday; deaths were 63 compared to 104 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 984 compared to 1,026 yesterday.
09-May-2021 India's COVID-19 deaths rose by more than 4,000 for a second consecutive day on Sunday as calls for a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the virus mounted. India's health ministry reported 4,092 fatalities over the past 24 hours, taking the overall death toll to 242,362. New cases rose by 403,738, just shy of the record and increasing the total since the start of the pandemic to 22.3 million.
09-May-2021 Even as a deadly second wave of Covid-19 ravages India, doctors are now reporting a rash of cases involving a rare infection (also called the "black fungus") among recovering and recovered Covid-19 patients. Doctors believe mucormycosis, which has an overall mortality rate of 50%, may be triggered by the use of steroids, a life-saving treatment for severe and critically ill Covid-19 patients.
09-May-2021 Myanmar's military rulers have branded a rival National Unity Government a terrorist group and blamed it for bombings, arson and killings, state-controlled media said on Saturday.
09-May-2021 President Joe Biden issued a proclamation for America's annual National Day of Prayer, but the word "God" did not appear at all. Biden's proclamation this week only talked about the "many religions and belief systems" of Americans and the "power of prayer."
09-May-2021 The IDF launches today, Sunday, the largest exercise in its history and, ahead of it, the terrorist organization Hezbollah has significantly increased its alertness. During the exercise, the forces will simulate a "month of war" for the first time since the Israeli army was founded in order to increase the IDF's readiness and fitness for war.
08-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,305 compared to 1,422 yesterday; deaths were 104 compared to 89 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,026 compared to 1,041 yesterday. After many weeks of record deaths, numbers are beginning to fall (see the graphic).
08-May-2021 India on Saturday reported its highest ever single-day COVID-19 death toll, as cases continued to rise and states imposed stricter lockdowns. India's health ministry reported 4,187 fatalities over the past 24 hours, taking the overall death toll to just under 240,000. Cases rose by 401,078, increasing the total since the start of the pandemic to 21.9 million.
07-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,422 compared to 1,632 yesterday; deaths were 89 compared to 94 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,041 compared to 1,100 yesterday.
07-May-2021 If your brain feels foggy and you're tired all the time, you're not alone. The pandemic has had an immense impact on everyone, in too many ways to count. Our bodies are responding with feelings of fatigue and lack of focus, experts say.
07-May-2021 A new study estimates that the number of people who have died of COVID-19 in the U.S. is more than 900,000, a number 57% higher than official figures. Worldwide, the study's authors say, the COVID-19 death count is nearing 7 million, more than double the reported number of 3.24 million. The analysis comes from researchers at the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.
07-May-2021 England's chief medical officer, Prof. Chris Whitty has added his voice those experts saying that Covid-19 is unlikely ever to be eradicated. He added that the outlook for the pandemic remains "pretty bleak" in the medium term, at a Royal Society online event.
07-May-2021 Three Covid medicines with the potential to "change the course" of the pandemic will be authorized for mass production and use in the EU by October under a European Commission plan. Five drugs will be selected for investment, which will be chosen from a long list of 57 candidates drawn up by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and will be wholly produced within EU member states.
07-May-2021 Israeli defense officials speculate that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei may be seriously ill after the leader posted on social media asking his followers to pray for his health. Security sources estimate that Khamenei's special request for medical prayers is genuine and indicates that his health condition is not good, a factor that might affect both the upcoming Iranian elections and have an overall impact on Iranian affairs.
06-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,632 compared to 1,564 yesterday; deaths were 94 compared to 142 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,100 compared to 1,121 yesterday.
06-May-2021 The situation in India continues to grow worse, based on local reports from Brethren there. Hopes that India's deadly second wave of COVID-19 was about to peak were swept away on Thursday as it posted record daily infections and deaths and as the virus spread from cities to villages across the world's second-most populous nation.
06-May-2021 Two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine have proved more than 95% effective against infection, hospitalization and death from Covid-19 in Israel, the country with the highest proportion of its population vaccinated in the world, research has found.
06-May-2021 In a surpise move, Israel's president has handed centrist politician Yair Lapid a shot at forming a government after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to do so, stirring anticipation that Israel's longest-serving leader could soon be out of power after 15 years in office.
06-May-2021 Russia has kept a heightened military presence near the Ukrainian border despite announcing the withdrawal of the troops it deployed last month, the U.S. and its NATO allies said, leading to concerns in Washington about Moscow's intentions.
05-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,564 compared to 994 yesterday; deaths were 142 compared to 94 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,121 compared to 1,190 yesterday.
05-May-2021 India accounted for nearly half of all COVID-19 cases worldwide last week, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, as the country's coronavirus deaths rose by a record 3,780 during the last 24 hours. The WHO said in its weekly epidemiological report that India accounted for 46% of global cases and 25% of global deaths reported in the past week. A top expert warned that the coming weeks in the country of nearly 1.4 billion people will be "horrible."
05-May-2021 India's entire delegation to the G7 (Group of Seven) summit in London is self-isolating after two of its members tested positive for COVID-19, the British government said on Wednesday. The delegation will be attempting to meet virtually. India is not a G7 member but was invited by Britain to this week's summit, along with Australia, South Africa and South Korea.
05-May-2021 Ali Mokdad from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington told the Guardian: "We're not going to reach herd immunity, simply, we're not going to reach it. It [COVID-19] is going to be seasonal, and it's going to be like the flu, and we're going to need to be ready for it."
05-May-2021 A study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that the rate of births per woman fell to 1.6 last year, which is well below the 2.1 required for a generation to replace itself. The rate has been trending downwards for more than 10 years but it is thought that anxiety about the economic impact of Covid has contributed to the biggest fall in the birth rate since the early 1960s.
05-May-2021 Myanmar's National Unity Government, set up by opponents of army rule, said on Wednesday it had formed a "people's defence force" to protect its supporters from military attacks and violence instigated by the junta. This another step toward full-blown civil war. Meanwhile, the military junta has banned satellite dishes, furthering tightening control over internet access.
04-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 994 compared to 682 yesterday; deaths were 94 compared to 98 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,190 compared to 1,214 yesterday.
04-May-2021 The next generation of Covid-19 vaccines in development could come as a pill, a patch, or a nasal spray and be easier to store and transport. These newer vaccines, from U.S. government labs and companies including Sanofi SA, Altimmune Inc. and Gritstone Oncology Inc., also have the potential to provide longer-lasting immune responses and be more potent against newer and multiple viral variants. Early trials of the vaccine rely on a "spike ferritin nanoparticle" which contains a triplet of coronavirus spike proteins.
04-May-2021 India, with the world's biggest vaccine making capacity, is experiencing severe shortages, and has suspended all exports. Only 12% of its population has been immunized. Adar Poonawalla, the chief executive of the Serum Institute, told the Financial Times on Sunday that the crisis would continue "for months", probably until July.
04-May-2021 New cases of COVID-19 in the United States fell for a third week in a row, dropping 15% last week to 347,000, the lowest weekly total since October, according to a Reuters analysis of state and county data. Nearly a third of the country's population has been fully vaccinated as of Sunday.
04-May-2021 The number of children contracting COVID-19 in the U.S. now accounts for more than a fifth of new coronavirus cases, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. One year ago, child COVID-19 cases made up only around 3% of the U.S. total.
04-May-2021 There is a growing belief among scientists that the U.S. will not achieve "herd immunity" when it comes to the coronavirus and there will be new flare-ups for the foreseeable future. Rustom Antia, an evolutionary biologist at Emory University, stated that the virus is "unlikely to go away." The virus is mutating at a faster rate than vaccine jabs are being given.
04-May-2021 Geographic locations with warm temperatures and long hours of sunlight — such as countries close to the equator and those experiencing summer — had a lower rate of COVID-19 cases, compared with countries farther away from the equator and those experiencing colder weather. This suggests that the virus may have a seasonal cycle.
04-May-2021 Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has until the end of the day today to form a coalition government or the matter will, for the first time ever, be handed over to the Knesset for resolution. Any member of the Knesset could be selected as Prime Minster, with Benny Begin expected to gain broad support.
03-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 682 compared to 1,083 yesterday; deaths were 98 compared to 88 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,214 compared to 1,253 yesterday.
03-May-2021 India on Monday reported more than 300,000 new coronavirus cases for a 12th straight day, taking its overall caseload to just shy of 20 million, while deaths from COVID-19 rose by 3,417. Medical experts say real numbers across the country of 1.35 billion may be five to 10 times higher than the official tally.
03-May-2021 At a time when about 100 million Americans have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, the U.S. continues to rely on a patchwork network of vaccine monitoring systems that fail to monitor a large enough swath of the population, resulting in "gaps" experts say. The current U.S. network includes VAERS, which is believed to miss many potential side effects.
02-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,083 compared to 1,307 yesterday; deaths were 88 compared to 85 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,253 compared to 1,277 yesterday.
02-May-2021 The World Health Organization has given the go-ahead for emergency use of Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine. The mRNA vaccine from the US manufacturer joins vaccines from Oxford/AstraZeneca, Pfizer/BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson in receiving the WHO's emergency use listing.
02-May-2021 The Myanmar state-run broadcaster in its main Saturday evening news bulletin gave details of at least 11 explosions over the previous 36 hours, most in the main city of Yangon, where a majority of Bible Students live. It reported some damage but no casualties.
01-May-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,307 compared to 1,636 yesterday; deaths were 85 compared to 138 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,277 compared to 1,284 yesterday.
01-May-2021 India posted yet another world record daily rise of 401,993 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, while deaths from COVID-19 jumped by 3,523 over the past 24 hours, according to health ministry data.
01-May-2021 Myanmar, which is home to about 35 Bible Students, is edging closer to civil war. So far Brethren have not experienced any of the violence personally, but in addition to coronavirus restrictions, they now face added limitations to personal freedom, inability to have online meetings due to internet blackouts, economic hardships, etc.
01-May-2021 Daily new cases continue to drop in Germany, with the latest figure of 18,935 representing a substantial decrease from the previous day's total of 24,329.
01-May-2021 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has asked AstraZeneca for a large amount of extra data related to its Covid-19 vaccine, further delaying the company's application for an emergency use authorization, or EUA, in the United States, according to a letter from the company obtained by NBC News.
30-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,636 compared to 1,850 yesterday; deaths were 138 compared to 138 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,284 compared to 1,295 yesterday.
30-Apr-2021 A growing number of U.S. colleges will require students to get Covid-19 vaccinations before returning to campus. The policies are igniting a debate over whether businesses and institutions like schools can make vaccines a condition of attendance.
30-Apr-2021 Updated reports from India indicate that a growing number of Brethren have been infected with the coronavirus, and at least two have died. Several Indian states have run out of COVID-19 vaccines a day before a planned widening of a nationwide inoculation drive. India reported 386,452 news cases in the past 24 hours, while deaths from COVID-19 jumped by 3,498 over the last 24 hours.
30-Apr-2021 On Friday, the German disease control agency reported 24,329 new cases of Covid-19 infections, a week-on-week drop of 12%. The crucial indicator of infections per 100,000 over seven days has sunk to its lowest value since mid-April.
30-Apr-2021 The World Health Organization has warned European governments that relaxing Covid restrictions too soon could cause cases to spiral again, potentially triggering a wave of new infections as seen in India.
30-Apr-2021 At least 44 people have been killed and about 150 injured in a crowd crush at a Jewish religious gathering in northern Israel attended by tens of thousands of people, in one of the country's worst peacetime disasters.
29-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,850 compared to 2,240 yesterday; deaths were 138 compared to 150 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,295 compared to 1,325 yesterday.
29-Apr-2021 India reported on Thursday another record rise in coronavirus cases and deaths over the last 24 hours, with its overall caseload rising above 18 million. Deaths surpassed the 200,000 mark on Wednesday.
29-Apr-2021 With global confirmed cases approaching 150 million, this amounts to two percent of the world's population. Current daily infections are roughly 800,000 every 24 hours.
29-Apr-2021 Pfizer announced an experimental at-home pill which will treat COVID-19 at first signs of illness – and it could be available by the end of the year.
28-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,240 compared to 2,019 yesterday; deaths were 150 compared to 172 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,325 compared to 1,336 yesterday.
28-Apr-2021 More reports have been received of Brethren in India who have contracted the coronavirus. India's toll from the coronavirus surged past 200,000 on Wednesday, the country's deadliest day, as shortages of oxygen, medical supplies and hospital staff compounded a record number of new infections.
28-Apr-2021 A total of only 86 new cases of the coronavirus were diagnosed across Israel Tuesday, according to data released by the Health Ministry Wednesday morning. There are now just 1,651 known active cases of the virus in Israel, of which 200 are being treated in hospitals.
28-Apr-2021 Millions of Americans have missed their second Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine dose appointments. According to a report in the New York Times, the reasons people are skipping second doses include issues with second dose appointments, people already feeling protected with just one shot, or having felt sick after the first dose.
27-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,019 compared to 1,256 yesterday; deaths were 172 compared to 117 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,336 compared to 1,354 yesterday.
27-Apr-2021 New cases of COVID-19 in the United States fell 16% last week to about 409,000, the biggest percentage drop in weekly new cases since February, according to a Reuters analysis of state and county data.
27-Apr-2021 International aid has been arriving in India and a number of countries have pledged to join in the fight against Covid, as the country's healthcare system is pushed to the brink of collapse by a deadly second wave.
26-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,256 compared to 1,542 yesterday; deaths were 117 compared to 127 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,354 compared to 1,358 yesterday.
26-Apr-2021 Israel's Health Ministry said on Sunday it is examining a small number of cases of heart inflammation in people who had received Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, though it has not yet drawn any conclusions.
26-Apr-2021 France reported on Sunday a rise in the number of patients with COVID-19 in hospital intensive care units (ICUs) as President Emmanuel Macron's government seeks signs of an end to the nation's third wave of infections.
26-Apr-2021 The Russian ambassador to Bucharest threatened publicly that: "Romania should be concerned if it is involved in some way in a military adventure designed by the 'hot heads' at NATO headquarters."
25-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The most recent weekly total of 1,195 deaths is the highest since the start of the Pandemic. At the same time, weekly new cases have declined rapidly. The number of new infections was 1,542 compared to 2,201 yesterday; deaths were 127 compared to 154 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,358 compared to 1,377 yesterday.
25-Apr-2021 India on Sunday reported the fourth consecutive record daily rise of 349,691 new coronavirus infections, taking its overall tally to 17 million infections. The U.S. has deployed healthcare assistance to the beleaguered country.
25-Apr-2021 More than a billion Covid-19 vaccines have been administered worldwide, even as global cases hit a new daily record – due mainly to surging infections in India.
25-Apr-2021 On Friday, thirty-six rockets were fired from Gaza towards southern Israel. IDF soldiers manning the Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted six rockets aimed at populated areas. The international community has failed to condemn such attacks.
24-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,201 compared to 2,523 yesterday; deaths were 154 compared to 170 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,377 compared to 1,391 yesterday.
24-Apr-2021 India's coronavirus infections rose by 346,786 overnight, the health ministry said on Saturday, setting a new world record for the third consecutive day, as overwhelmed hospitals in the densely-populated country begged for oxygen supplies. Daily deaths were also a new record.
24-Apr-2021 Israel has recorded no new daily Covid-19 deaths for the first time in 10 months, as the country pushes ahead with its speedy vaccination drive. The last time Israel reported zero Covid-19 deaths was at the end of June last year, after lockdown measures curbed a first wave of infections.
23-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,523 compared to 2,989 yesterday; deaths were 170 compared to 150 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,391 compared to 1,405 yesterday.
23-Apr-2021 Six hospitals in the Indian capital Delhi have completely run out of oxygen and doctors say other hospitals have just a few hours' worth of supply left. A number of people have died while waiting for oxygen, and more than 99% of all intensive care beds are full. India is in the grips of a second wave of Covid infections and on Thursday recorded the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world.
23-Apr-2021 Russia's Defense Ministry ordered "some" of its troops to begin withdrawing from the Ukrainian border in a move that could help de-escalate tensions with Kyiv and the West, but its continuing military presence in the volatile region appears likely to keep nerves on edge.
23-Apr-2021 Ukraine has asked Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to act as intermediary with Russia. With tensions high at the Russian-Ukrainian border, Yevgen Korniychuk, Ukrainian Ambassador to Israel, says the Israeli prime minister would be a good intermediary due to his good relationship with both the Russian and the Ukrainian presidents
22-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,989 compared to 3,006 yesterday; deaths were 150 compared to 175 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,405 compared to 1,436 yesterday.
22-Apr-2021 India reported 314,835 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the health ministry said, the world's biggest one-day jump in new infections. The South Asian nation now has 15.9 million Covid-19 cases in total since the start of the pandemic, second only to the U.S. with nearly 31.9 million cases, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The world's fastest-growing surge of infections has been straining the healthcare system in India's hardest-hit cities, with hospitals running short on oxygen, beds and medical supplies.
22-Apr-2021 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 4 Travel Health Notice for Romania due to COVID-19, indicating a very high level of COVID-19 in the country.
22-Apr-2021 Food insecurity is rising sharply in Myanmar in the wake of the military coup and deepening financial crisis with millions more people expected to go hungry in coming months, the United Nations said on Thursday.
21-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,006 compared to 2,931 yesterday; deaths were 175 compared to 237 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,436 compared to 1,432 yesterday.
21-Apr-2021 India reported more than 200,000 new cases for the 7th straigh day, and more than 2,000 deaths from COVID-19 over the last 24 hours, the highest single-day tally for the country so far. Authorities scrambled to shore up supplies of medical oxygen to hospitals in the capital, Delhi, on Wednesday as a fast-spreading second wave of coronavirus stretched medical infrastructure to the breaking point.
21-Apr-2021 Europe's drug regulator has found a possible link between Johnson & Johnson's one-dose Covid-19 vaccine and rare blood clotting issues in adults who received the shot in the United States, the watchdog agency said Tuesday.
21-Apr-2021 Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has signed a law allowing reservists to be called up for military service without announcing mobilization, his office said on Wednesday.
21-Apr-2021 Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Monday called for restricting the use of U.S. military aid to pressure Israel in order to save the "two-state solution."
21-Apr-2021 The mandate for forming a new Israeli government is running out of time. Should Netanyahu fail to build a new government by the end of the 28-day time limit, President Reuven Rivlin is expected to hand over the mandate directly to the Knesset, an unprecedented move.
20-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,931 compared to 1,768 yesterday; deaths were an all-time record of 237 compared to 149 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,432 compared to 1,448 yesterday.
19-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,768 compared to 2,265 yesterday; deaths were 149 compared to 160 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,448 compared to 1,475 yesterday.
18-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,265 compared to 3,474 yesterday; deaths were 160 compared to 135 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,475 compared to 1,505 yesterday.
18-Apr-2021 U.S. coronavirus cases rose 8% in two weeks as more states eased restrictions. Michigan, which had some of the nation's strongest health regulations, saw its second highest single-day case total on Friday.
18-Apr-2021 The number of deaths due to COVID-19 has topped 3 million worldwide, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University. More than 566,000 of those deaths have been in the United States, which is now seeing a rise in coronavirus cases despite efforts to get people vaccinated.
17-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,474 compared to 3,264 yesterday; deaths were 135 compared to 137 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,505 compared to 1,493 yesterday.
17-Apr-2021 Due to the success of its vaccination campaign, Israelis will no longer be required to wear face masks in open spaces, the Health Ministry announced. Health Minister Yuli Edelstein instructed the director general of his office to sign an order that would allow the removal of face masks beginning Sunday.
17-Apr-2021 Johnson & Johnson privately reached out to Covid-19 vaccine rivals to ask them to join an effort to study the risks of blood clots and speak with one voice about safety, but Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. declined.
17-Apr-2021 In a letter on Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine, J&J scientists refuted a case report published earlier this week by Kate Lynn-Muir and colleagues at the University of Nebraska, who asserted that the rare blood clots "could be related to adenoviral vector vaccines." In an interview with Reuters on Thursday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert and an adviser to the White House, said the fact that they [AstraZeneca and J&J] are both adenovirus vector vaccines is a "pretty obvious clue" that the cases could be linked to the vector.
17-Apr-2021 The United States has administered 202,282,923 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Friday morning and distributed 258,502,815 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday.
17-Apr-2021 Ontario has announced sweeping new police powers to enforce an extended stay-at-home order, in the latest sign that officials in Canada's most populous province have lost control of the rapidly spreading coronavirus. With a record number of new cases, there is growing worry among experts that the already-strained healthcare system is being further pushed to the brink.
17-Apr-2021 More than 70% of Americans are at least slightly concerned about returning to normal, according to a survey from Safety.com. A fifth of those who are worried specifically cited concerns about returning to the workplace, according to CBS News.
17-Apr-2021 Germany's Catholic bishops are taking steps that could rattle the foundations of the world's largest church. They are moving to tear down the Catholic Church's teaching on human sexuality, priestly celibacy and other morally and politically charged issues. Without direct and immediate intervention by Pope Francis, the church could be headed for another schism.
16-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,264 compared to 3,852 yesterday; deaths were 137 compared to 195 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,493 compared to 1,518 yesterday.
16-Apr-2021 Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said people will "likely" need a third dose of a Covid-19 vaccine within 12 months of getting fully vaccinated, CNBC reported. It is also possible they will require an annual vaccination, he said. His remarks were made over two weeks ago but were made public only on Thursday.
16-Apr-2021 A study by the University of Oxford found the risk of rare but sometimes-deadly blood clotting is roughly eight to ten times greater in those infected with COVID-19 than among those who have received any of the three Western-developed vaccines widely available.
16-Apr-2021 As COVID-related deaths in Poland surpass 800 a day and the country hits a European record for excess deaths, epidemiologists have pointed to a major medical personnel shortage as one of the culprits. Across Poland, doctors have complained about long lines of ambulances at hospitals or rescheduled non-COVID surgeries for life-threatening illnesses.
16-Apr-2021 India is battling a massive second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with new restrictions imposed in Mumbai, New Delhi and other cities. There are also growing calls for officials to speed up the country's vaccination programme as hospitals are swamped with patients. The 217,353 new cases reported by the health ministry on Friday marked the eighth record daily increase in the last nine days.
15-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,852 compared to 4,076 yesterday; deaths were 195 compared to 164 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,518 compared to 1,521 yesterday.
15-Apr-2021 Poland has extended its lockdown rules until 25 April, after the country reported its second highest ever death toll on Wednesday, with 803 people. There were also 21,283 new cases, a 43% increase from the previous week.
15-Apr-2021 India reported a record 200,000 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday and the financial hub of Mumbai entered a lockdown, as many hospitals treating coronavirus patients reported severe shortages of beds and oxygen supplies.
15-Apr-2021 The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany jumped on Thursday by 29,426 to 3.073 million, the biggest increase since Jan. 8 as the government seeks to push through tougher nationwide curbs to try to contain a third wave of the virus.
14-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,076 compared to 3,883 yesterday; deaths were 164 compared to 193 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,521 compared to 1,530 yesterday.
14-Apr-2021 So far, more than 74 million people have gotten fully vaccinated in the United States. It's unclear how many have later gotten infected with the coronavirus anyway. But Michigan, Washington and other states have reported hundreds of cases.
14-Apr-2021 The Johnson & Johnson vaccine was just about to break through. The one-shot vaccine could reach the homeless and even be distributed door to door. But on Tuesday morning, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine became the focus of international scrutiny after federal health authorities recommended pausing its use after six women ages 18 to 48 developed a very rare type of blood clot in the brain after they got the shots.
14-Apr-2021 Sweden has reported Europe's highest number of new coronavirus infections per head over the past week and has more patients in intensive care than at any time since the pandemic's first wave.
14-Apr-2021 India has confirmed a national one-day record of 184,000 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours, according to government ministry figures. A Covid second wave is battering the country. Doctors speak of a new variant of the virus that appears to be spreading faster than ever before, affecting young people and even children, pushing India's healthcare system to the brink of collapse.
14-Apr-2021 Dr Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, has said that herd immunity is an "elusive concept" and there is no definitive percentage of the population that needs to be vaccinated to achieve it. He told BBC Radio 4 Today that a return to normality would be gradual, and is "not going to be like a light switch going on and off."
14-Apr-2021 A leading Israeli doctor believes the country may be close to reaching "herd immunity". Roughly 68% of the population are likely to have antibodies in their blood which can fight off the virus. Cases are falling in all age groups including children, even though under-16s are not generally being vaccinated.
14-Apr-2021 Concern is growing in Brazil about the rising number of young people who are critically ill in hospital with Covid-19. Research suggests more than half of patients being treated in intensive care last month were under 40, as new cases continue to explode.
13-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,883 compared to 2,323 yesterday; deaths were 193 compared to 113 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,530 compared to 1,529 yesterday.
13-Apr-2021 India reported 161,736 new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, hitting the world's highest daily tally once again, for a total of 13.69 million cases, health ministry data showed. The largest bathing day of the Hindu religious festival Kumbh Mela (two million participants) highlighted the immense challenge facing officials in trying to implement social distancing.
13-Apr-2021 The global coronavirus pandemic is still growing exponentially, the World Health Organization said on Monday, as it reported 4.4 million cases in the last week, the seventh straight week of rising numbers.
13-Apr-2021 The U.S. Federal Government deficit was $3.1 trillion for fiscal year 2020. So far in fiscal year 2021 the deficit is more than $1.7 trillion. The total debt at the end of March was $28 trillion.
12-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,323 compared to 3,302 yesterday; deaths were 113 compared to 129 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,529 compared to 1,531 yesterday. Only four ICU beds are available in all of Romania.
12-Apr-2021 The massive drop in Israel's coronavirus infection rate as a result of almost 60% of Israel being vaccinated, with both doses, appears to have given the country herd immunity, Channel 12 reported Saturday. The decline in morbidity data is continuing despite the widespread opening of the economy and holiday gatherings over Purim and Passover with a 97% drop in the number of daily infections, the report said.
12-Apr-2021 An antibody drug from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. reduced the risk of developing symptomatic Covid-19 infection by 81% compared with a placebo in people living with someone infected by the new coronavirus, a study found.
12-Apr-2021 Australia has abandoned a goal to vaccinate nearly all of its 26 million population by the end of 2021 following advice that people under the age of 50 take Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine rather than AstraZeneca's shot.
12-Apr-2021 More frequent and intense global challenges — in the form of disease outbreaks, financial crises, or the negative effects of climate change or new technologies — are likely to stress already brittle systems of government and international organizations over the next two decades, according to a comprehensive forecast compiled by U.S. intelligence officials and released on Thursday.
11-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,302 compared to 4,310 yesterday; deaths were 129 compared to 139 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,531 compared to 1,492 yesterday. This is another all-time record.
11-Apr-2021 Canada's seven-day average of new, confirmed Covid-19 cases per million people now exceeds the United States. Data as of Friday and collected by the University of Oxford's Our World in Data portal show the rolling seven-day average in Canada sits at 205.7, eclipsing the U.S., which is at 205.1, while both numbers are dramatically higher than a month ago.
11-Apr-2021 There are ominous signs of a new wave of coronavirus infections building in the US midwest, even as vaccinations continue to gather pace across the country. In Michigan, hospitalizations have soared and intensive care beds are being rapidly filled.
11-Apr-2021 Global confirmed cases of COVID-19 have passed the 135 million mark. India has the highest number of new cases, nearly double that of the U.S. which is in second place. Brazil has the highest daily death toll, nearly triple that of the U.S. which is in second place.
11-Apr-2021 Myanmar security forces fired rifle grenades at protesters in a town near Yangon on Friday, killing more than 80 people, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) monitoring group and a domestic news outlet said. Doctors report they were routinely targeted with violence by the military, and prevented from treating the victims of its bloody attacks.
10-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The total confirmed infections has now exceeded one million. The number of new infections was 4,310 compared to 4,942 yesterday; deaths were 139 compared to 134 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,492 compared to 1,496 yesterday.
10-Apr-2021 A family member of Brethren in the Sighet, Romania area died from a reaction to the Astra-Zeneca vaccine. He was not aware of having COVID and after testing positive was given the vaccine. He developed a cerebral edema and internal hemorrhaging which were the reported cause of death.
10-Apr-2021 Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer urged high-school classes to go remote for two weeks and called for a halt to both youth sports and indoor dining, to combat a steep surge in Covid-19 cases in the state.
10-Apr-2021 India's daily coronavirus cases on Saturday rose by a record for the fifth time this week and deaths surged to the highest in more than five months, with hospitals and crematoriums overflowing in parts of the country.
10-Apr-2021 Johnson & Johnson's coronavirus vaccine is facing a double dose of problems. Georgia is the third state to temporarily shut down a vaccine site after eight people suffered adverse reactions to the shot.
10-Apr-2021 An oral vaccine being developed in California could offer protection from COVID-19 without the need for an injection, CBS Los Angeles reports. Researchers at the Chan Soon-Shiong Research Institute in El Segundo are testing whether a series of capsules might work as well as, or even better than, existing COVID vaccines.
10-Apr-2021 Russia has warned of full-scale war in Eastern Ukraine, blaming Kyiv. The recent deployment of Russian troops along Ukraine's border and Moscow's indication that it could intervene in the event of a full-scale war in eastern Ukraine are dimming hopes for a peaceful resolution of the conflict that has festered for seven years and cost thousands of lives.
09-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,942 compared to 4,989 yesterday; deaths were 134 compared to 172 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,496 compared to 1,495 yesterday. This is another daily record high.
09-Apr-2021 The race to vaccinate hit more roadblocks on Thursday, as several patients at a mass vaccination site in North Carolina suffered immediate reactions to the Johnson & Johnson shot. A day earlier, 11 people had adverse reactions in Denver, ranging from dizziness to nausea. Both sites temporarily shut down.
09-Apr-2021 One in three COVID-19 survivors suffer from a neurological or mental disorder within six months of infection, according to a University of Oxford-led study looking mostly at American patients.
09-Apr-2021 Nations around the world are setting new records for COVID-19 deaths and new coronavirus infections, and the disease is surging even in some countries that have kept the virus in check.
09-Apr-2021 The new administration in Washington has made several major policy changes recently that affect Israel: (1) Funding of hundreds of millions of dollars has been restored to the Palestinian Authority. (2) Judea and Samaria are now officially considered "occupied territory" by the State Department. (3) Funding of the anti-semitic UNRWA has been renewed. (4) Intentions to lift sanctions against Iran without any preconditions has been announced.
08-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,989 compared to 5,407 yesterday; deaths were 172 compared to 175 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,495 compared to 1,487 yesterday. This is another daily record high.
08-Apr-2021 India reported a record 126,789 COVID-19 cases on Thursday as several states struggle to contain a second surge in infections, complaining of vaccine shortages and demanding inoculations be expanded to younger people.
08-Apr-2021 Myanmar is edging closer to civil war as demonstrators in the northwest part of the country fought back against the military with hunting rifles and firebombs. Eleven of the protesters were killed and dozens were injured. In the U.K., the military ousted the Myanmar ambassador for criticizing the military coup. In a similar action recently, the Myanmar ambassador to the U.N. was officially removed by the military junta after speaking out publicly against the coup. Such actions could be replicated in other countries around the world.
07-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,407 compared to 5,231 yesterday; deaths were 175 compared to 196 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,487 compared to 1,466 yesterday. This is another daily record high.
07-Apr-2021 Worldwide deaths from COVID-19 have officially surpassed the three million mark. Confirmed infections are more than 132 million. Brazil is the new hotspot with soaring rates of daily deaths and new infections.
07-Apr-2021 There is a possible link between AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine and very rare blood clots in the brain but the causes are still unknown, a senior official for the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said in an interview published on Tuesday. The University of Oxford said on Tuesday it had paused a small UK trial testing the COVID-19 vaccine it developed with AstraZeneca PLC in children and teenagers, as it waits for more data on rare blood clotting issues in adults who received the shot.
07-Apr-2021 Confusion in Europe as the Block's chief drug regulator contradicted a statement by a senior official from the agency saying it has not established a causal connection between the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine and a rare blood clotting syndrome.
07-Apr-2021 Researchers are racing to develop the next generation of COVID-19 vaccines, utilizing a variety of innovative technologies to produce more convenient and more potent options. Some of the new vaccines are already being tested in volunteers and could even be available for distribution in the next year or so. Potential self-administered options include tablets and nasal-sprays.
07-Apr-2021 Nearly 40,000 minor children in the United States have lost at least one parent to COVID-19, according to a sobering new report published in the JAMA Network Monday.
07-Apr-2021 Yangon, Myanmar, has been one of the major cities severely affected by the military coup. Brethren there have been able to maintain sporadic contact and reported recently that in spite of the recent military aggression they are all safe, but the harvest work has come to a halt as well as online meetings since the Internet has largely been shut down. The possibility of a deepening civil war in Myanmar is "high," opposition Gen. Yawd Serk said from his administrative base in Chiang Mai province.
07-Apr-2021 Ukraine's president has called on NATO and key member states to hasten his country's membership of the western military alliance in response to a growing buildup of Russian forces on his country's borders.
07-Apr-2021 China has created its own digital currency, controlled by its central bank, which will issue the new electronic money. It is expected to give China's government vast new tools to monitor both its economy and its people. By design, the digital yuan will negate one of bitcoin's major draws: anonymity for the user.
06-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,231 compared to 3,611 yesterday; deaths were 196 compared to 120 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,466 compared to 1,478 yesterday.
05-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,611 compared to 4,151 yesterday; deaths were 120 compared to 97 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,478 compared to 1,456 yesterday. This is another daily record high.This is another daily record high.This is another daily record high.This is another daily record high.This is another daily record high.
05-Apr-2021 India's daily COVID-19 cases soared by 103,558 on Monday, the biggest daily increase since the start of the Pandemic, data from the health ministry showed, taking the total to 12.6 million.
05-Apr-2021 Officials in Manatee county, Florida, extended an evacuation zone overnight and warned that up to 340m gallons of toxic waste could engulf the area in "a 20ft wall of water" if they could not repair the breach at the Piney Point reservoir in the Tampa Bay area, north of Bradenton. Work crews continue pumping millions of gallons of contaminated wastewater into Tampa Bay to relieve pressure on the reservoir walls.
04-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,151 compared to 5,498 yesterday; deaths were 97 compared to 154 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,456 compared to 1,448 yesterday. This is another daily record high.
04-Apr-2021 Total confirmed infections globally have surpassed 130 million. Deaths are rapidly approaching the three million mark.
04-Apr-2021 In another blow to AstraZeneca, the United States has put Johnson and Johnson in charge of a plant that ruined 15 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine and has stopped British drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc from using the facility, a senior health official said on Saturday.
04-Apr-2021 The vicious crackdown by Myanmar's military following its toppling of the civilian government in a February 1 coup is taking a devastating toll on the country's children. Since the junta seized control, at least 43 children have been killed by the armed forces, according to humanitarian organization Save the Children.
03-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,498 compared to 5,808 yesterday; deaths were 154 compared to 145 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,448 compared to 1,454 yesterday.
03-Apr-2021 People who are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus can travel without putting themselves at serious risk as long as they wear masks and take other precautions, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday, moderating its blanket stance against travel even while continuing to discourage it.
03-Apr-2021 The number of Israelis newly infected with the coronavirus has dropped to the lowest level since June 2020. In an update Friday by the Ministry of Health, 331 new infections were diagnosed, with more than 35,000 tests performed, equating to an infection rate of less than one percent. This compares to more than 10,000 new infections per day at the peak.
03-Apr-2021 France reported on Friday that 5,254 people were in intensive care units with COVID-19, an increase of 145 people in one day and the highest daily increase in five months. New confirmed cases also jumped by the highest week-on-week rate since the end of November, when France was in its second nationwide lockdown. The ministry reported 46,677 new cases, 6.2% more than a week ago, taking the total to 4.74 million cases.
03-Apr-2021 After more than two months of steep declines, coronavirus infections are on the rise again in the U.S. — along with COVID-19 hospitalizations in many states. In the past seven days, the U.S. reported slightly more than 65,000 new cases per day on average, a jump of 20% from two weeks earlier. Many states have seen even more dramatic growth, as high as 125% in Michigan, according to an analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University.
03-Apr-2021 Scientists have discovered that the immune system can find bacteria residing within cancer cells and use them to provoke an immune reaction against a tumor, according to a study published in Nature. An international research team, led by researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, says this discovery may explain why the gut microbiome is known to affect the success of immunotherapy treatments for cancer.
03-Apr-2021 U.S. President Joe Biden used a first official phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday to offer staunch support in Ukraine's standoff over Russian troops near its border. Western nations and transatlantic military alliance NATO voiced concern over Russian troop movements near the eastern Donbass region where Ukrainian troops are in conflict with Russian-backed forces.
03-Apr-2021 Israel's state-owned water company Mekorot has inked a $3 million deal to provide Bahrain's Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) with consulting services on water projects and to share knowledge on technologies, in what marks the first "significant" agreement between the Jewish state and the Gulf emirate since the Abraham Accords.
02-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,808 compared to 6,115 yesterday; deaths were 145 compared to 136 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,454 compared to 1,434 yesterday – another daily all-time record.
[NOTE: Other news items were not posted for April 2nd due to an all-day road trip.]
01-Apr-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,115 compared to 6,156 yesterday; deaths were 136 compared to 129 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,434 compared to 1,412 yesterday – another daily all-time record.
01-Apr-2021 An estimated 10% to 30% of people who get COVID-19 suffer from lingering symptoms of the disease, or what's known as "long COVID." As the U.S. pushes to get people vaccinated, a curious benefit is emerging for those with this post-illness syndrome: Their symptoms are easing and, in some cases, fully resolving after they get vaccinated.
01-Apr-2021 President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday ordered France into its third national lockdown and said schools would close for three weeks as he sought to push back a third wave of COVID-19 infections that threatens to overwhelm hospitals.
01-Apr-2021 Fewer than a quarter of people in the UK with Covid symptoms are requesting a test, while only half say they are fully self-isolating after symptoms develop, researchers have found.
01-Apr-2021 COVID-19 was the third underlying cause of death in the U.S. in 2020 (345,323) after heart disease (690,882) and cancer (598,932), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed on Wednesday.
01-Apr-2021 Pfizer says its Covid-19 vaccine is safe and 100 percent effective in preventing the illness in teenagers ages 12 to 15. The vaccine, given in two doses three weeks apart, is already cleared for emergency use in people ages 16 and up. The company plans to request emergency use authorization for 12 to 15-year-olds in the coming weeks.
01-Apr-2021 According to a study which focused on staff members at Sheba Medical Center in Tel HaShomer, Ramat Gan in central Israel, serum antibody levels appeared to drop off roughly two months after the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. But some experts say the study is not necessarily cause for alarm, noting that similar declines are observed with antibodies for other viruses, and that antibodies make up only part of the body's immune system.
01-Apr-2021 Regional leaders of two German states badly hit by a third wave of coronavirus have urged the rest of the country to reimpose a tough lockdown to flatten infection rates, as a leading virologist said Germany was in a "serious and complicated" stage of the pandemic.
01-Apr-2021 The U.S. State Department has begun calling Judea and Samaria "occupied territory" in it's official documents. The previous administration referred to the area as the West Bank. In the same report it was announced that the Biden administration gave $75 million to the Palestinian Authority.
01-Apr-2021 There is no recent word from Brethren in Yagon, one of the major cities in Myanmar where large protests have taken place in recent days. A U.N. special envoy warned of the risk of a bloodbath because of an intensified crackdown on anti-coup protesters. Thailand's foreign ministry on Thursday said it was "gravely troubled" by casualties during weekend unrest in Myanmar and called for utmost restraint and an end to the violence.
31-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,156 compared to 6,204 yesterday; deaths were 129 compared to 175 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,412 compared to 1,405 yesterday – another daily all-time record.
31-Mar-2021 A critical component of the immune system known as T cells that respond to fight infection from the original version of the novel coronavirus appear to also protect against three of the most concerning new virus variants, according to a U.S. laboratory study released on Tuesday.
31-Mar-2021 Israeli elections have resulted in a deadlock (again). By law, President Reuven Rivlin must appoint the party leader he thinks has the best chance of forming a government. If this should ultimately fail, a majority of the Knesset members can then nominate a person who is not necessarily a party leader. Veteran Knesset member Benny Begin, son of the late Menachem Begin, is the leading contender.
31-Mar-2021 Egypt's embarrassing escapade with the huge container ship that ran aground on March 23, could end up as a "major catalyst" for Israel to pursue "Suez Canal bypass" projects, which have been on the back burner due to their high cost. One recently in the news is the project to transport oil from the United Arab Emirates to Europe, via an old pipeline that runs through Israel from Eilat to Ashkelon.
31-Mar-2021 The United States has ordered the departure of non-essential diplomats from Myanmar, amid growing violence following the military coup to oust civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. In an unrelated incident, at least nine people have tested positive for Covid-19 in a Chinese city on the border with Myanmar.
31-Mar-2021 There is a "concerning" buildup of Russian forces near the border with Ukraine, according to a U.S. defense official. Ukrainian Commander-In-Chief Ruslan Khomchack told parliament Tuesday that Russian troops from different regions have been assembling near the Russia-Ukraine border.
30-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,204 compared to 3,825 yesterday; deaths were 175 compared to 120 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,405 compared to 1,398 yesterday. This is a yet another all-time record.
30-Mar-2021 COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc. with BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc. reduced the risk of infection by 90% two weeks or more after the first of two shots, according to data from a real-world U.S. study released on Monday. A study from Israel recently found the Pfizer vaccine to be 97 percent effective in preventing Covid-19, including severe disease and death.
30-Mar-2021 The planet could have a year or less before first-generation Covid-19 vaccines are ineffective and modified formulations are needed, according to a survey of epidemiologists, virologists and infectious disease specialists. This is due to the threat of variations of the virus – some more transmissible, deadly and less susceptible to vaccines – that are emerging and percolating.
30-Mar-2021 The US faces "impending doom" from a resurgent coronavirus pandemic, the head of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned on Monday. "Right now I'm scared," Rochelle Walensky said in an emotional and unscripted moment during a White House briefing. Despite more than 2.5m vaccinations being administered per day and a shrinking death toll, Walensky believes a fourth wave is imminent.
30-Mar-2021 Canada on Monday suspended the use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine for people under 55 following concerns it might be linked to rare blood clots. Most of the patients in Europe who developed a rare blood clot after vaccination with AstraZeneca were women under age 55, and the fatality rate among those who develop clots is as high as 40%.
30-Mar-2021 London has recorded zero daily deaths from Covid-19 in a single day for the first time in over six months, official data indicates.
Public Health England (PHE) statistics from Sunday showed no fatalities within 28 days of a positive Covid-19 test in the UK capital, while the country as a whole recorded 19 deaths.
30-Mar-2021 Dozens of doctors from the Paris public hospital group warned on Sunday they were preparing to have to triage patients in the next two weeks, amid fears of surging Covid-19 cases in the French capital. "We will be forced to select which patients get access to the ICUs and which do not in order to save as many lives as possible. This triage will involve all patients, Covid and non-Covid, especially regarding access to critical care for adult patients," the op-ed read.
29-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,825 compared to 4,439 yesterday; deaths were 120 compared to 117 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,398 compared to 1,386 yesterday. All-time records have been set nearly every day for the past week.
29-Mar-2021 New restrictions in Bucuresti, Romania were largely ignored on Sunday. Public transport was crowded. Shopping malls were packed. The 14-day infection rate in the capital city is nearly 7.5 per thousand, which is more than the double the "code red" threshold.
29-Mar-2021 The coordinator of the anti-Covid vaccination campaign in Romania, Doctor Valeriu Gheorghiţă, stated that immunity after the anti-Covid vaccination could last at least 12 months. He does not believe that a seasonal vaccination like the flu will be necessary.
29-Mar-2021 Researchers working on nearly 100 projects related to Covid-19 around the globe have had free access to some of the world's most powerful computers in the past year, courtesy of a consortium led in part by the U.S. government and technology companies. Collectively, the group helped researchers world-wide gain access to more than 600 petaflops of computing capacity.
29-Mar-2021 Myanmar security forces opened fire at a funeral on Sunday, witnesses said, as people across the country gathered to mourn 114 people killed the previous day in the worst crackdown on protests since last month's military coup. In a separate incident, troops burned alive a snacks vendor in Mandalay.
28-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,439 compared to 5,869 yesterday; deaths were 117 compared to 162 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,386 compared to 1,373 yesterday. This is yet another all-time record.
28-Mar-2021 The number of patients with coronavirus in French intensive care units rose on Saturday to a new high for this year, increasing the pressure to impose new restrictions that President Emmanuel Macron says will probably be needed.
28-Mar-2021 Angela Merkel's chief of staff Helge Braun told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper: "The next few weeks will determine whether we can foreseeably get the pandemic under control. If the number of infections rises rapidly again there is a growing danger that the next virus mutation will become resistant to the vaccine." Braun said. "Then we would need new vaccines, then we would have to start vaccinating all over again."
28-Mar-2021 Brazil is in the throes of a battle against the new Covid-19 variant from the Amazon that threatens to send shock waves across the globe. Home to less than 3% of the world's population, Brazil currently accounts for almost a third of the daily global deaths from Covid-19, driven by the new variant. The so-called P.1 strain is already present in more than 20 countries.
28-Mar-2021 The pandemic upended the lives of millions of families who suddenly found themselves without one or both sources of income. Many have gone from enjoying the cultural markers of the middle class — job stability, homeownership and some disposable income — to teetering on the edge of poverty. Some experts fear the effects could be long-lasting. [See Volume 4, page 372.]
28-Mar-2021 On a day when Myanmar's commander in chief vowed in a speech "to protect people from all dangers," soldiers and police he controls gunned down dozens of men, women and children (as young as 5 years old) across the country. The U.N.'s Human Rights office said Saturday it had received reports of at least 114 people killed and hundreds injured across 40 locations in the country. Myanmar army fighter jets launched air strikes on Saturday on a village near the Thai border.
28-Mar-2021 The Suez Canal is still blocked, and hopes are fading for a quick solution to the problem. More than 12% of all the world's trade passes through the canal, a trip which saves on average 2 to 4 weeks travel time and 7,000 km / 4300 miles. If ships are forced to take the longer trip, it will increase shipping costs dramatically for a wide range of consumer goods.
27-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,869 compared to 6,516 yesterday; deaths were 162 compared to 116 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,373 compared to 1,364 yesterday. This is another all-time record.
27-Mar-2021 In Germany, the president of the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases has warned that there could be as many as 100,000 new coronavirus infections a day in Germany if the spread of the coronavirus is not curbed, Reuters reports.
27-Mar-2021 Poland has reported a new daily record of 35,143 coronavirus cases, a record number of infections for the third consecutive day. On Thursday, the Polish government said that new coronavirus restrictions would be imposed on Saturday, and were expected to last for two weeks, until 9 April.
27-Mar-2021 After several weeks at a plateau, Covid-19 cases in the United States are rising again, the clearest warning sign yet that the country could face another "avoidable" surge, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.
26-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,516 compared to 6,651 yesterday; deaths were 116 compared to 140 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,364 compared to 1,348 yesterday.
26-Mar-2021 Romania has extended its night time curfew in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus infections. Officials say that the movement of people will be restricted from 8pm onwards, and shops will be shut from 6pm Friday until Sunday in towns with more than 4 cases per 1,000 people. Cluj is affected, but Sighet is not.
26-Mar-2021 In England, more than 40,600 people have been likely infected with coronavirus while being treated in hospital for another reason, raising concerns about the NHS's inability to protect them.
26-Mar-2021 The U.S. will provide $15 billion for Palestinians "in the West Bank and Gaza Strip," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the UN Security Council Briefing on the situation in the Middle East on Thursday. The previous administration withheld funds to the Palestinians due to their continued use of such funds for terrorism and "pay-for-slay" support to terrorists and their families.
25-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,651 compared to 6,136 yesterday; deaths were 140 compared to 137 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,348 compared to 1,351 yesterday.
25-Mar-2021 Israel has administered two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine to more than half its population, the country's health minister has said, Reuters reports. The health minister, Yuli Edelstein, said that 50.07% of the overall population had received both vaccine doses. The country has seen an 85% drop in daily deaths, a 72% decrease in the critically ill and 86% fewer daily coronavirus cases. Israel has administered nearly 10 million shots, more than 110 doses of the coronavirus vaccine per 100 people in the population, a higher proportion than any other country in the world.
25-Mar-2021 Brazil topped 300,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday, becoming the second country to do so amid a spike in infections that has seen the South American country report record death tolls in recent days. The U.S. has recorded more than half a million deaths.
25-Mar-2021 Another stalemate in Israel as an unprecedented fourth national election in less than two years resulted in no clearcut winner. A coalition government will be more complicated than ever, as one cannot be formed by either of the two main blocks without the inclusion of the Arab Ra'am party. Final results will be available on Friday.
25-Mar-2021 The fragile nature of global supply lines has been underscored in recent days when a dust storm blew a container ship sideways and blocked the Suez Canal. The resulting interruption of traffic through the canal will result in delays in global shipments, cause higher gas prices, and aggravate shortages already being experienced in many manufacturing sectors worldwide. Freeing the ship could take "weeks" as unloading the containers may become necessary.
24-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,136 compared to 6,149 yesterday; deaths were 137 compared to 174 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,351 compared to 1,367 yesterday. New restrictions on a national level are under consideration, including a weekend curfew from 8pm, with all stores closing at 4pm. The 14-day "incident rate" currently stands at 6.15 nationally with 3.0 being the "code red" threshold.
24-Mar-2021 Ukraine has reported a record daily number of coronavirus deaths for the second consecutive day, Reuters reports. Maksyn Stepanov, the health minister, said that there were 342 deaths in the last day, up from 333 deaths recorded the previous day. On Tuesday, Ukraine tightened border controls in an attempt to slow infections, and now requires visitors to provide a negative test.
24-Mar-2021 Early results from Israel's fourth snap election suggested yet another stalemate, with Benjamin Netanyahu looking to cobble together a coalition by partnering with extreme nationalist, hardline religious and far-right parties. This seems unlikely, suggesting a potential extension of the two-year deadlock, and even an unwanted fifth election. In a surprise development, an Arab party which is projected to win five seats could hold the balance of power.
24-Mar-2021 A seven-year-old girl has been shot dead in Myanmar, becoming the youngest known victim in the crackdown following last month's military coup. Khin Myo Chit's family told the BBC she was killed by police while she ran towards her father, during a raid inside their home in the city of Mandalay.
24-Mar-2021 The U.S. Mexico border crisis is escalating. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, shared photos this week from inside a packed detention facility for boys that depicted conditions not much different from those that led progressives to hammer Trump for keeping "kids in cages."
23-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: Alarming increases in all categories. The number of new infections was 6,149 compared to 3,743 yesterday; deaths were 174 – nearly triple compared to 60 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,367 compared to 1,339 yesterday. This is the fifth daily new record for ICU.
23-Mar-2021 The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boot the Covid virus out of the body's cells, say researchers. Some viruses are known to compete in order to be the one that causes an infection. University of Glasgow scientists say it appears cold-causing rhinovirus trumps coronavirus. NOTE: the common cold does not provide any lasting protection against Covid.
23-Mar-2021 More troubles for AstraZeneca PLC, who may have provided an incomplete view of efficacy data on its COVID-19 vaccine from a large scale U.S. trial, a U.S. health agency said Tuesday in yet another setback for the shot. The shot has been dogged by doubts over its efficacy, dosing regimen and possible side effects.
23-Mar-2021 New cases of COVID-19 in the United States rose 5% to more than 394,000 last week, the first increase after declining for nine straight weeks, according to a Reuters analysis of state, county and CDC data. Total confirmed cases have reached 30 million in the U.S.
23-Mar-2021 Several European countries are extending or reintroducing lockdown measures as a third wave of the pandemic sweeps the continent fuelled by more contagious new variants of coronavirus such as the B117 mutation first detected in the UK. Germany is "in a new pandemic" in which the British Covid variant is dominant, Angela Merkel has said, as she announced a strict shutdown over Easter to halt soaring infection rates.
23-Mar-2021 Dexamethasone – the inexpensive steroid that quickly emerged as a highly effective Covid therapy thanks to a large drug testing programme pioneered by UK scientists – has so far saved the lives of an estimated million people globally, including 22,000 in the UK, according to NHS England.
23-Mar-2021 Ukraine, a republic of 41 million people has been hit by a sharp increase in coronavirus cases in recent weeks that prime minister Denys Shmygal has said is the third wave of the pandemic. The country registered a record daily high of 333 coronavirus-related deaths over the past 24 hours.
23-Mar-2021 A top World Health Organization expert on the coronavirus pandemic said Monday the weekly global count of deaths from Covid is rising again, a "worrying sign" after about six weeks of declines.
22-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,743 compared to 4,267 yesterday; deaths were 60 compared to 76 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,339 compared to 1,334 yesterday. This is the fourth daily new record for ICU. Other numbers are very high for a Sunday.
22-Mar-2021 In Poland Covid cases have risen 27% compared with a week ago, and most are attributed to the highly contagious British variant. A partial three-week lockdown has been imposed, keeping schools, shops, restaurants and many other facilities closed.
22-Mar-2021 Internet is unstable throughout Myanmar. Br. Naing and several others were able to attend part of the Vellore, India Convention. Sr. Mary in Yagon related that the brethren in Myanmar are okay, but some are confined to their dwellings due to unrest on the streets. Myanmar activists plan fresh protests on Monday despite reports of security forces killing more people at the weekend.
22-Mar-2021 Mexico is under pressure to slow the flow of migrants north as the U.S. government wrestles with growing numbers, especially of families and unaccompanied minors. The U.S. government is deeply worried by the rapid increase in illegal entries since last fall.
22-Mar-2021 A shortage in chips, the "brain" within every electronic device in the world, has been steadily worsening since last year. Initially the problem was only a temporary delay in supplies as factories shut down when the coronavirus pandemic first hit. However, although production is back to normal, a new surge in demand driven by changing habits fuelled by the pandemic means that it is now reaching crisis point.
21-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,267 compared to 6,096 yesterday; deaths were 76 compared to 112 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,334 compared to 1,324 yesterday. This is the third day in a row with a record number in ICU. Additional restrictions and a longer curfew are under consideration.
21-Mar-2021 A recent study in Israel showed that a single dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is up to 85% effective. The scheduled second dose makes the vaccine even more effective, but at a time where vaccine supplies are limited, there's a lot to be said about prioritizing the first dose for the most people.
20-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,096 compared to 5,593 yesterday; deaths were 112 compared to 143 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,324 compared to 1,313 yesterday. This is another all-time record.
20-Mar-2021 Scientists are exploring several possibilities that might explain at least 18 reports of extremely rare blood clots in the brain that occurred in individuals in the days and weeks after receiving the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. European investigators have put forward one theory that the vaccine triggers an unusual antibody in some rare cases affecting younger women taking birth control pills.
20-Mar-2021 India reported 40,953 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, the biggest daily jump in nearly four months, with its richest state and economic backbone Maharashtra accounting for more than half the infections. Doctors have blamed the fresh infection wave on people's relaxed attitude to mask-wearing and other social distancing measures.
20-Mar-2021 China's first local coronavirus case since February was a staff worker at a hospital who had received two shots of a vaccine between late January and early February, state media has reported. Chinese vaccines have had a much lower effectiveness rate compared to those developed and approved in the West.
20-Mar-2021 Taking low-dose aspirin may reduce ICU admissions and in-hospital deaths of COVID-19 patients, according to a new study. Researchers found low-dose aspirin use led to a 44% reduction in the use of ventilators, a 43% reduction in ICU admission and a 47% reduction in in-hospital mortality.
20-Mar-2021 France and Poland have reintroduced partial lockdowns as both countries battle a sharp rise in Covid infections in recent weeks. Coronavirus cases are also rising exponentially in Germany, with Chancellor Angela Merkel warning it is likely that the country will now need to apply an "emergency brake" and re-impose lockdown measures.
20-Mar-2021 Israel will hold an unprecedented fourth election in two years on Tuesday after the current coalition government was dissolved in December. The last national poll, published Friday evening, showed the pro-Netanyahu block with 50 seats. Two Center parties are projected to win a total of 15 seats, and would therefore determine who forms the next government.
20-Mar-2021 Opponents of Myanmar's coup protested again on Saturday and international pressure on the military junta to halt its repression of democracy supporters increased, with Asian neighbours joining Western countries in condemning lethal force. Asian neighbours, who have for years abided by a code of not criticising each other's problems, have also begun speaking out, including Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
19-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,593 compared to 6,174 yesterday; deaths were 143 compared to 90 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,313 compared to 1,286 yesterday. This is a new all-time record.
19-Mar-2021 Residents of the Gaza Strip are avoiding coronavirus vaccinations due to rumors being circulated on social media, Reuters reported Thursday. Although the Hamas terror organization that controls Gaza has received 83,300 doses of vaccine, only 8,500 people have gone to clinics so far to get vaccinated, a health official said.
19-Mar-2021 The European Union's health agency said AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine was "safe and effective" and didn't increase the risk of blood clots. France, Germany, Italy and others said they would start vaccinating residents again.
19-Mar-2021 Whether working from home or not, many people are feeling burned out during the coronavirus pandemic. A new survey found that nearly 90% of respondents in more than 40 countries felt that their work lives were getting worse during the pandemic. And more than 60% felt that they were experiencing burnout often or very often. Burnout has three components: Exhaustion (physical and emotional), cynicism about work, and self-blame. Potential remedies: establish a daily routine, take hourly 5-minute breaks and take daily walks, maintain clear boundaries between work and life, and try to identify and avoid "triggers" that create stress.
19-Mar-2021 A cohort of scientists and more than 350 individual clinicians from across the world believe that there is a growing body of evidence that Covid-19 can cause diabetes in some patients. Some doctors are considering the possibility that the virus ‒ by disrupting sugar metabolism ‒ could be inducing an entirely new form of diabetes.
19-Mar-2021 Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Friday called for bloodshed to be halted in military-ruled Myanmar and for Southeast Asian leaders to hold a high-level meeting to try to find a way out of the country's escalating crisis. These are some of the strongest comments yet by a regional leader on Myanmar's violent crackdown on anti-coup demonstrations.
18-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,174 compared to 6,186 yesterday; deaths were 90 compared to 89 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,286 compared to 1,266 yesterday.
18-Mar-2021 Older people who have recovered from Covid cannot assume they are immune from a second attack, according to a new study that shows the over-65s are much more susceptible to reinfection.
18-Mar-2021 The Ukrainian capital Kyiv will go into a strict lockdown for three weeks from 20 March to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
17-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,186 (another record high for 2021) compared to 6,118 yesterday; deaths were 89 compared to 133 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,266 compared to 1,226 yesterday.
17-Mar-2021 Moderna, the maker of one of three COVID-19 vaccines currently authorized for use in the U.S., announced Tuesday it will start testing its vaccine on children as young as 6 months old. The move makes Moderna the first U.S. vaccine maker to test its vaccine on infants.
17-Mar-2021 Coronavirus infections are rising exponentially in Germany, an expert at the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said on Tuesday, putting at risk plans to lift the lockdown and revive the economy. The number of cases per 100,000 reported on Tuesday was 83.7, up from 68 a week ago, and the RKI has said that metric could reach 200 by the middle of next month.
17-Mar-2021 India's daily coronavirus infections jumped by 28,903 on Wednesday, data from the health ministry showed, for the highest increase since Dec. 13 and taking the nationwide tally to 11.44 million.
17-Mar-2021 The Pandemic has caused Aliyah to Israel from South America to trend upward "Israel is an attractive country," Alejandro Mellincovsky, the head of Aliyah Promotion in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. "Even before the pandemic it was a very attractive country, but now even more, when you see the performance of the vaccination process and the beginning of the recovery." (The positive test rate in Israel currently stands at 2.1% – the lowest since early December.)
17-Mar-2021 On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised four more countries will join the Abraham Accords in the near future.
17-Mar-2021 Israeli archaeologists on Tuesday announced the discovery of dozens of Dead Sea Scroll fragments bearing a biblical text found in a desert cave and believed hidden during a Jewish revolt against Rome nearly 1,900 years ago.
17-Mar-2021 Myanmar's most powerful Buddhist monks' association called on the junta to end violence against protesters and accused an "armed minority" of torture and killing innocent civilians since last month's coup, media said on Wednesday. The government-appointed organisation also said in a draft statement its members intended to halt activities in an apparent protest.
16-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 6,118 (the highest in three months) compared to 2,972 yesterday; deaths were 133 compared to 82 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,226 compared to 1,225 yesterday. Only 38 beds are available in ICU nationwide. No beds are available in the Capital Bucuresti.
16-Mar-2021 Germany, Italy, France and Spain joined the ranks of many European countries that have temporarily halted use of the Covid-19 shot made by AstraZeneca PLC over blood-clot concerns, dealing another blow to the continent's sluggish vaccination rollout and threatening the credibility of the vaccine itself. The World Health Organization has insisted countries should keep using the vaccine.
16-Mar-2021 Moderna Inc said on Monday it had dosed the first participant in an early-stage study of a new COVID-19 vaccine candidate that could potentially be stored and shipped in refrigerators instead of freezers. The company said its new candidate could make it easier for distribution, especially in developing countries where supply chain issues could hamper vaccination drives.
16-Mar-2021 Emmanuel Macron has warned tough new measures may be needed to contain a new wave of coronavirus in areas of France where infections and deaths continue to rise. Parisians have been warned that the French capital, one of a number of areas of concern, is facing a new lockdown if the situation continues to worsen.
16-Mar-2021 Myanmar's ruling junta has declared martial law in a wide area of the country's largest city, as security forces killed dozens of protesters over the weekend in an increasingly lethal crackdown on resistance to last month's military coup.
15-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,972 compared to 4,383 yesterday; deaths were 82 compared to 44 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,225 compared to 1,232 yesterday. These figures are from yesterday, and are very high for a Sunday.
15-Mar-2021 Total confirmed infections worldwide of COVID-19 have climbed to 120 million, with deaths at 2.8 million. Brazil has overtaken the U.S. to hold the top spot globally in daily new cases and daily deaths. The U.S. still leads the world in total confirmed cases at nearly 30 million with more than half a milllion deaths.
15-Mar-2021 AstraZeneca PLC said on Sunday a review of safety data of people vaccinated with its COVID-19 vaccine has shown no evidence of an increased risk of blood clots. However, several countries that suspended use of the vaccine when reports surfaced of blood clots in a number of those inoculated, have not yet resumed its use. In the latest incident, a teacher in Italy died following his vaccination with the AstraZeneca product on Saturday.
15-Mar-2021 Publicly, the European Union has dismissed Russia's global coronavirus vaccine supply campaign as a propaganda stunt by an undesirable regime. Behind the scenes, the bloc is turning to Moscow's Sputnik V shot as it tries to get its stuttering efforts to vaccinate its 450 million people back on track, EU diplomatic and official sources told Reuters.
15-Mar-2021 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed on Thursday that the United Arab Emirates, with which Israel signed a peace deal in September, plans to invest $10 billion in the country. Earlier on Thursday, the Czech Republic opened a branch of its Israel embassy in Jerusalem, joining Hungary as the second European country to open an embassy in Jerusalem. The ceremony was attended by Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi.
15-Mar-2021 In Myanmar, supporters of detained democtratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi marched again on Monday. The protesters took to the streets in defiance of the authorities' escalating use of violence, with more than 50 killed on Sunday in the bloodiest day since the Feb. 1 coup.
15-Mar-2021 India will propose a law banning cryptocurrencies, fining anyone trading in the country or even holding such digital assets, a senior government official told Reuters in a potential blow to millions of investors piling into the red-hot asset class.
14-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,383 compared to 4,964 yesterday; deaths were 44 compared to 79 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,232 compared to 1,203 yesterday.
14-Mar-2021 The World Health Organization in Europe announced on March 4 that after six weeks of decline, cases in the continent rose by a staggering 9% compared to the previous week — putting the continent again over 1 million cases weekly.
14-Mar-2021 The United States has reported a record daily number (more than 4.5 million) of vaccine doses administered. This has far surpassed the previous highest daily figure, which stood at 2.9 million doses.
13-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,964 compared to 5,010 yesterday; deaths were 79 compared to 108 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,203 compared to 1,166 yesterday.
13-Mar-2021 The Israeli Defense Force has announced that it's the first army in the world to reach herd immunity thanks to its vaccination campaign. Major General Itzik Turgeman, head of the IDF's Technology and Logistics Directorate, said that 81% of Israel's military has received the coronavirus vaccine, caught the virus and built up antibodies as a result or both contracted the virus and received an injection.
13-Mar-2021 Shops, restaurants and schools will be closed across most of Italy on Monday, with PM Mario Draghi warning of a "new wave" of the coronavirus outbreak. For three days over Easter, 3-5 April, there will be a total shutdown.
12-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,010 compared to 5,236 yesterday; deaths were 108 compared to 96 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,166 compared to 1,171 yesterday.
12-Mar-2021 The Maryland-based biotech company Novavax reported Thursday that its experimental Covid-19 vaccine is more than 96 percent effective in preventing mild and severe illness. The results are from the company's Phase 3 clinical trial.
12-Mar-2021 Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE said Wednesday that real-world data from Israel suggests that their Covid-19 vaccine is 94 percent effective in preventing asymptomatic infections, meaning the vaccine could significantly reduce transmission.The number of new infections was 5,236 compared to 4,564 yesterday; deaths were 96 compared to 100 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,171 compared to 1,140 yesterday.
12-Mar-2021 In general, available vaccines have outperformed expectations — even when it comes to what are known as the "variants of concern."
12-Mar-2021 Joe Biden has directed states to make all American adults eligible for coronavirus vaccines by 1 May and set an audacious goal of 4 July for gatherings to celebrate "independence" from the deadly pandemic.
12-Mar-2021 Public health experts are saying that COVID-19 is never going to end. It now seems poised to become an endemic disease — one that is always a part of our environment, no matter what we do. There's simply no track record of infectious diseases being completely eradicated.
12-Mar-2021 Delaying the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine must be urgently reviewed for cancer patients after a single shot was found to offer inadequate protection, researchers have said. Three weeks after the first jab antibody responses were found in 39% of people with solid cancers and 13% of people with blood cancer.
12-Mar-2021 The Covid-19 situation in greater Paris is "especially worrying" and the government will take extra restrictive measures there if the pandemic continues at its current pace, France's health minister said on Thursday. While new infections are not growing exponentially, the numbers taken into intensive care have reached a new 3-1/2-months high nationally, close to 4,000, as France faces more dangerous variants.
12-Mar-2021 The governor of Brazil's most populous state, São Paulo, declared a two-week emergency shutdown as the South American country's coronavirus outbreak continues to spiral out of control. Brazil reported 2,233 Covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, the second consecutive day that fatalities have exceeded 2,000.
12-Mar-2021 MYANMAR IN DEPTH
12-Mar-2021 Transportation Minister Miri Regev announced that the 3.5-billion shekel ($1 billion) project is moving to the planning stage for a rail link from Israel to the Persian Gulf. "The Gulf to Gulf project is a mega-project that will change the face of the regional economy in the Middle East and connect Israel to many countries in the region by rail and will be a gateway to the Mediterranean for them," Regev said in her announcement last week.
11-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The third wave continues to grow in intensity. The number of new infections was 5,236 compared to 4,564 yesterday; deaths were 96 compared to 100 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,171 compared to 1,140 yesterday.
11-Mar-2021 It was one year ago today, on March 11th, 2020 that the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a Pandemic.
11-Mar-2021 According to new peer-reviewed study results published in the medical journal JCI Insight last month, high-antibody plasma was shown to be safe and increase survival chances in newly symptomatic coronavirus patients. This specialized treatment proved most effective when given early in the course of an infection.
11-Mar-2021 Israel's campaign to vaccinate Palestinians who come to work daily from Judea and Samaria is gaining steam after a pilot program ran successfully last week, with the first 21,000 workers starting to stream into inoculation centers set up Tuesday at various points in the country. Under the Oslo Accords, the health of the Palestinian people is the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority, not Israel.
11-Mar-2021 A new antibody drug "reduces hospital admission or death from Covid-19 by 85%", the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has announced. The drug, called VIR-7831, is a new treatment for people with mild to moderate illness, and the study has been so successful that it has been stopped early. GSK and its partner, Vir Biotechnology, plan to immediately seek an emergency use authorisation in the United States and approval in other countries, including potentially in the UK.
11-Mar-2021 Austria's national medicines regulator has suspended use of a batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine after four patients were diagnosed with dangerous blood clotting conditions after receiving the jab, PA reports.
11-Mar-2021 Israel, Cyprus and Greece signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday regarding a project to link their power grids via the construction of the world's longest and deepest undersea power cable. The project, called the "Euro-Asia Interconnector," will help Israel build on more options for renewable energy, contribute to energy security and reduce energy prices, said Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz at the signing ceremony in Nicosia.
10-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,564 compared to 4,989 yesterday; deaths were 100 compared to 93 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,140 compared to 1,126 yesterday.
10-Mar-2021 Israel has officially vaccinated more than 5 million of its population against the COVID-19 virus. Israel leads the world, with more than half its population having received the vaccine.
10-Mar-2021 Total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. are near the 30 million mark.
10-Mar-2021 The change in relations between Israel and the Biden White House, and especially the change in White House posture towards Iran, has prompted some Arab countries to consider strategic-security ties with Israel.
09-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: Huge increases today as the "third wave" continues to grow. The number of new infections was 4,989 compared to 2,280 yesterday; deaths were 93 compared to 63 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,126 compared to 1,098 yesterday.
09-Mar-2021 Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh threatened that if the International Criminal Court (ICC) indicts Israel for war crimes, the Palestinians will then go after American corporations and organizations that support Israel, the MEMRI media watchdog organization reported Monday.
09-Mar-2021 Myanmar's military junta has revoked the licences of five media outlets as it seeks to clampdown on independent coverage of anti-coup protests, a major blow to press freedom in the country. Soldiers and police raided the headquarters of Myanmar Now, a news outlet that has scrutinized the military, seizing computers, part of the newsroom's data server and other equipment.
08-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,280 compared to 3,288 yesterday; deaths were 63 compared to 46 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,098 compared to 1,093 yesterday.
08-Mar-2021 Russian intelligence agencies have mounted a campaign to undermine confidence in Western vaccines, using online publications that in recent months have questioned the vaccines' development and safety, U.S. officials said. At the same time, a senior European Medicines Agency official has urged European Union members to refrain from granting national approvals for the Russian Covid-19 vaccine for the same reasons.
08-Mar-2021 The race to find vaccines for COVID-19 has dominated the headlines, but there's been less news about how to keep people with COVID out of the hospital. A possible treatment is called fluvoxamine. The generic drug was developed 40 years ago as an antidepressant and has been primarily used to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder. Now, a small clinical trial has led scientists to look closely at fluvoxamine as a possible tool to keep newly diagnosed COVID-19 patients from becoming severely ill.
08-Mar-2021 Police in Myanmar have occupied hospitals and universities and reportedly arrested hundreds of people involved in protesting last month's military coup, while a coalition of labour unions called a nationwide strike for Monday.
08-Mar-2021 While eBay was removing books like Dr. Seuss' 1937 And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, anti-Semitic children's books like Nazi propagandist Ernst Hiemer's 1938 The Poisonous Mushroom (Der Giftpilz), The Protocols of the Elders of Zion and Hitler's Mein Kampf were still available for sale. The Offensive Material Policy supposedly removes listings that promote or glorify hatred, violence, or discrimination.
07-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,288 compared to 4,064 yesterday; deaths were 46 compared to 69 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,093 compared to 1,070 yesterday. Deaths generally follow a curve that is two weeks later than new cases and the number in ICU. Additionally, a large proportion of new cases are among the young who have a lower mortality rate.
06-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,064 compared to 4,342 yesterday; deaths were 69 compared to 101 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,070 compared to 1,067 yesterday.
06-Mar-2021 An experimental Covid-19 drug (molnupiravir) that promises to be a kind of Tamiflu for the pandemic had positive results in a preliminary study, one of the drug's developers said. The pill, which is being developed by Ridgeback Biotherapeutics LP and Merck & Co., significantly reduced infectious virus in subjects in a mid-stage study after five days of treatment.
06-Mar-2021 As the U.S. continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic, with more than 29 million confirmed caes, it could soon have a new source of hope: a fourth vaccine. An executive at AstraZeneca told CBS News on Friday that the company plans to file for emergency use authorization of its vaccine in the coming weeks, pending the results of a clinical trial. Three other vaccines have already been approved for use in the U.S.: Moderna's and Pfizer's, which are both two doses, and Johnson & Johnson's, which requires only one dose.
05-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,342 compared to 4,271 yesterday; deaths were 101 compared to 98 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,067 compared to 1,071 yesterday. Authorities are calling the current increase as a "third wave" of the virus. More counties have entered into "code red" status.
05-Mar-2021 Japanese supercomputer simulations showed that wearing two masks gave limited benefit (89%) in blocking viral spread compared with one properly fitted mask (85%). The findings in part contradict recent recommendations from the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that two masks were better than one at reducing a person's exposure to the coronavirus.
05-Mar-2021 There's more evidence the B.1.1.7 coronavirus variant first noticed in the UK poses little threat to the efficacy of vaccines. Research published Thursday shows while that variant can hide a little bit from the immune system, it's not enough to decrease the value of vaccines significantly – and it doesn't threaten to re-infect people who have recovered from the previous dominant variant of the virus.
05-Mar-2021 Leaders of Israel, Austria and Denmark have announced plans to launch a joint research and development fund towards the possible future production of coronavirus vaccines. The move by the two European countries to partner with Israel follows dissatisfaction at the pace of vaccine distribution in the European Union.Ivermectin, a drug normally used to treat parasites including lice and rabies, did not seem to have a significant impact and improve the symptoms of patients with Covid-19, according to new research published Thursday, in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
05-Mar-2021 Ivermectin, a drug normally used to treat parasites including lice and rabies, did not seem to have a significant impact and improve the symptoms of patients with Covid-19, according to new research published Thursday, in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
04-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,271 compared to 4,278 yesterday; deaths were 98 compared to 77 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,071 compared to 1,032 yesterday.
04-Mar-2021 Anthony Fauci recently drew attention to the fact that some of the people who were infected with COVID-19 may have symptoms for up to nine months. Specifically, researchers at the University of Washington found that 30 percent of patients reported such long-term effects during which time they experienced fatigue, shortness of breath, sleep disturbances, and other symptoms.
04-Mar-2021 About 80.5 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in the United States, according to data published Wednesday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's a seven-day average of more than 2 million doses per day for the first time. More than 8% of the population – about 27 million people — have been fully vaccinated with both shots, CDC data shows.
04-Mar-2021 India's Covaxin vaccine is 81% effective against coronavirus, according to early data released Wednesday by Bharat Biotech, the company that developed the drug jointly with the government-run Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Data indicates the vaccine can also effectively combat the coronavirus variant first spotted in the UK, according to an analysis by the National Institute of Virology.
03-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: More than one million persons have been vaccinated against COVID-19 as of today. The number of new infections was 4,278 compared to 3,950 yesterday; deaths were 77 compared to 106 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,032 compared to 1,044 yesterday. Maramures continues under "code red" status.
03-Mar-2021 The British COVID variant, which became dominant in several countries recently, is much more contagious, relative to the previous strains, and studies have shown that it increases the chance of serious infections and of hospitalizations by 60-70% more than the original strain.
03-Mar-2021 The coronavirus variant originally found in Manaus in Brazil and detected in six cases in the UK was able to infect as many as 60% of the people in the Amazonian city who might have expected to be immune after a first bout of Covid, researchers say. The new variant has spread rapidly and is currently implicated in 87% of cases in the principle city of Manaus.
02-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,950 compared to 2,096 yesterday; deaths were 106 compared to 53 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,044 compared to 1,022 yesterday. This continues an alarming increase in recent days.
02-Mar-2021 A senior World Health Organization official said Monday it was "premature" and "unrealistic" to think the pandemic might be stopped by the end of the year, but that the recent arrival of effective vaccines could at least help dramatically reduce hospitalizations and death.
02-Mar-2021 The number of new coronavirus infections globally rose last week for the first time in seven weeks. Numbers rose in Europe, the Americas, southeast Asia and the eastern Mediterranean. Brazil is steaming into the darkest days of its coronavirus catastrophe, as fatalities soared to new heights.
02-Mar-2021 The spread of highly contagious coronavirus variants is threatening to fuel a "potential fourth surge of cases" in the US, a top health official has warned. The head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said she was concerned by recent Covid-19 data.
01-Mar-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,096 compared to 2,830 yesterday; deaths were 53 compared to 63 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,022 compared to 1,006 yesterday. Maramures remains under "code red" with a rate of 3.12 which is the 3rd highest in Romania. Cluj with a rate of 3.15 is 2nd.
01-Mar-2021 At least 18 people were killed in Myanmar over the weekend, the United Nations said, as security forces began their toughest crackdown yet against protesters who have taken to the streets for more than three weeks to oppose this month's coup, signaling the military's growing willingness to use lethal force despite international condemnation.
28-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,830 compared to 3,432 yesterday; deaths were 63 compared to 54 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,006 compared to 997 yesterday.
28-Feb-2021 The first single-dose Covid-19 vaccine, a shot from Johnson & Johnson , was authorized for use, a big boost for a mass-vaccination campaign rushing to end the deadliest pandemic in more than a century. The vaccine's authorization on Saturday, the third issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, will give health authorities a desperately needed new source of doses as they scramble to ramp up inoculations ahead of elusive emerging strains.
28-Feb-2021 An epidemiologist with La Trobe University, Associate Prof Hassan Vally, said just over one year later it has become clear surface transmission is not as significant a factor in Covid-19 spread as once feared. "The threat surface transmission poses is relatively small." Close contact aerosol spread is the driving factor in Covid-19 transmission, primarily when an infected person is in close contact with another person.
28-Feb-2021 On Friday night Myanmar's ambassador to the UN, Kyaw Moe Tun, gave an emotional address calling for international action to restore democracy and protect the people. By Saturday evening, MRTV, a Myanmar state-run television channel, announced he had been dismissed from his post.
27-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,432 compared to 3,761 yesterday; deaths were 54 compared to 66 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 997 compared to 968 yesterday.
27-Feb-2021 Israel has received scathing criticism in the mainstream press for "failing to vaccinate the palestinians." The Palestinian Authority (PA) vetoed an Israeli offer last week to set up a vaccination clinic on the Temple Mount even though weekly prayers attract thousands of Arabs in potential super-spreader events and against health regulations.
27-Feb-2021 In the US: The third Covid-19 spike may be leveling off at a high level, a worrying shift in the trajectory of the pandemic, a top government health official warned Friday. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, gave a sobering update about the latest data.
27-Feb-2021 At the White House COVID response team briefing Friday, top U.S. health officials warned that recent progress in declining case numbers appears to have stalled and that restrictions shouldn't be eased until the U.S. baseline is much lower.
27-Feb-2021 One of the strongest weapons against the troubling number of new coronavirus variants in the United States and worldwide may be one vaccine the FDA hasn't approved yet. Earlier this month, the World Health Organization gave the go ahead for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to be used internationally, and it is already being distributed in countries around the world to help fight COVID-19. The vaccine is unique in that it is relatively easy to update against new variants.
27-Feb-2021 Israel is currently in talks with the kingdoms of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates in establishing a defense alliance against the Iranian threat.
26-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,761 compared to 3,923 yesterday; deaths were 66 compared to 81 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 968 compared to 985 yesterday. Numbers in all categories have increased in recent days.
26-Feb-2021 German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned that her country could be caught in a third wave of Covid-19 if it lifts its lockdown too quickly. Much of Europe is recording cases of newer Covid-19 variants, particularly ones that first emerged in the United Kingdom and South Africa. Both are believed to spread more rapidly than previous variants.
26-Feb-2021 Sinan Aral, a professor at MIT: "If the eventual outcome of [internet content restrictions] is that we have social media platforms in every major country or market that are separate, then what we will have is an information ecosystem that is completely bifurcated or splintered across the globe. … What that portends is a citizenry that has completely different sets of information about local events, about world events, and perhaps a very splintered worldview of reality."
25-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,923 compared to 3,337 yesterday; deaths were 81 compared to 73 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 985 compared to 969 yesterday. Numbers in all categories have increased in recent days.
25-Feb-2021 Ukraine has registered an almost 40% jump in new coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, Reuters reports. A total of 8,147 cases were registered on Wednesday, the highest figure since mid-January when the number of new cases stood at 8,199.
25-Feb-2021 India reported 16,738 new coronavirus infections, health ministry data showed on Thursday, for the highest daily jump since January 29, according to a Reuters tally.
25-Feb-2021 Covid-19 has killed nearly 51,000 people in California, which on Wednesday became the first state to pass 50,000 deaths related to the coronavirus, according to an NBC News count of reports. The state has seen more than 3.5 million infections, a statistic that also leads the nation based on raw numbers.
25-Feb-2021 The drugmaker Moderna is set to begin testing a new version of its Covid-19 vaccine that was specifically designed to target an emerging variant of the coronavirus that was first reported in South Africa. The company announced Wednesday that it has shipped doses of its variant-specific booster shot to the National Institutes of Health for clinical trials.
24-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,337 compared to 3,382 yesterday; deaths were 73 compared to 119 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 969 compared to 978 yesterday.
24-Feb-2021 Novavax is nearing approval for its COVID-19 vaccine. Unlike shots from Pfizer and Moderna, Novavax's vaccine doesn't need to be kept at freezing temperatures. That's an advantage for hospitals, clinics and pharmacies lacking freezer capacity. Additionally, its vaccine approach is similar to those of proven vaccines, such as those for shingles and hepatitis B, one reason why some scientists are fans.
24-Feb-2021 The World Health Organization said global deaths from coronavirus-related complications have declined by 20% in the last week, with cases dropping for the sixth consecutive week worldwide. Deaths have been falling for three consecutive weeks.
24-Feb-2021 AstraZeneca has told the European Union it expects to deliver less than half the Covid vaccines it was contracted to supply in the second quarter, an EU official told Reuters on Tuesday.
24-Feb-2021 Johnson & Johnson expects to fall far short of its commitment to deliver 10 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine by the end of February, with under 4 million to be ready to ship after a hoped-for emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration. As a single-dose vaccine that can be stored at standard refrigerator temperatures for three months, Johnson & Johnson's candidate had been heralded as a key advance in the U.S. vaccine effort.
23-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,382 compared to 1,634 yesterday; deaths were 119 compared to 47 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 978 compared to 972 yesterday.
23-Feb-2021 The U.S. will observe five days of mourning in honor of the half million Americans who have died as a result of COVID-19. Flags will be flown at half-mast during that time.
22-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,634 compared to 2,419 yesterday; deaths were 47 compared to 52 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 972 compared to 968 yesterday.
22-Feb-2021 As numbers continue to decrease worldwide, news stories are decreasing as well. However, experts warn that the current trend could be temporary due to several factors. As numbers decrease for the initial strain of COVID, the rate of mutations will increase. Also, a sense of complacency becomes a danger prompting people to ignore safety regulations.
22-Feb-2021 The official death toll in the U.S. has now surpassed the half million mark. Second place is held by Brazil with less than half that number. The U.S. is responsible for more than one-fourth of global infections, and more than one-fifth of all deaths.
22-Feb-2021 More than 4,000 SpaceX workers volunteered for monthly blood tests in a COVID-19 study held last year. This week the group of doctors and academic researchers published its findings, which suggest that a certain threshold of antibodies might provide people lasting protection against the virus. Elon Musk is listed as a co-author of the peer-reviewed study, which appears in the journal Nature Communications.
21-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,419 compared to 2,721 yesterday; deaths were 52 compared to 57 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 968 compared to 963 yesterday.
21-Feb-2021 Israel reopened swathes of its economy on Sunday in what it called the start of a return to routine enabled by a COVID-19 vaccination drive that has reached almost half the population. Coming exactly a year after Israel's first documented coronavirus case, Sunday's easing of curbs is part of a government plan to open the economy more widely next month.
20-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,721 compared to 2,712 yesterday; deaths were 57 compared to 79 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 963 compared to 949 yesterday.
There are no other news items at this time.
19-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,712 compared to 3,058 yesterday; deaths were 79 compared to 71 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 949 compared to 936 yesterday.
19-Feb-2021 Confirmed cases worldwide of COVID-19 have now exceeded 110 million, though the daily totals continue a downward trend. Daily deaths also continue to decrease with the global total standing at 2.5 million. U.S. cases still represent more than one-fourth of the total at 28 million, while deaths are nearing half a million.
19-Feb-2021 The first dose of Pfizer Inc's COVID-19 vaccine is 85% effective, a study of healthcare workers at an Israeli hospital has found, potentially fuelling a debate over the recommended two-dose schedule as governments try to stretch out supplies.
19-Feb-2021 According to a U.K. epidemiologist at Edinburgh University who sits on the government's SPI-M committee, the chance of a super-spreader event among the crowds that turned up at public beaches was minimal in theory – and nonexistent in practice. Another British expert stated: "We have known for some time that only about 10% of transmission events are linked to outdoor activities…"
18-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,058 compared to 2,815 yesterday; deaths were 71 compared to 62 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 936 compared to 935 yesterday.
17-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,815 compared to 2,676 yesterday; deaths were 62 compared to 81 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 935 compared to 943 yesterday.
17-Feb-2021 Beatrice Mahler, the manager of the "Marius Nasta" Institute in Bucharest, stated that the producers of anti-Covid vaccines expect immunity after vaccination to last up to two years, and an answer in this regard is expected later this year.
17-Feb-2021 The number of new cases of Covid-19 reported worldwide fell by 16% last week to 2.7 million, the World Health Organization said. The number of new deaths reported also fell 10% week-on-week, to 81,000.
16-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,676 compared to 1,381 yesterday; deaths were 81 compared to 79 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 943 compared to 941 yesterday.
16-Feb-2021 Another coronavirus variant with a potentially worrying set of mutations has been detected in the UK. The variant, known as B1525, is the subject of a report by researchers at the University of Edinburgh, who say it has been detected through genome sequencing in 10 countries.
16-Feb-2021 Australia's medical regulator granted provisional approval for AstraZeneca Plc's COVID-19 vaccine on Tuesday, bolstering a national inoculation programme it plans to begin rolling out next week. The federal government says it has ordered enough of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which will mostly be manufactured in Australia, to cover the country's population of 25 million people.
16-Feb-2021 Vaccine distribution in states and cities across the US are slowing down because of winter storms that have left more than a third of the continental US with below-zero temperatures Monday.
15-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,381 compared to 1,872 yesterday; deaths were 79 compared to 41 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 941 compared to 964 yesterday.
15-Feb-2021 There are the 130 countries that "are yet to administer a single dose," according to UNICEF. That's 2.5 billion people who so far have been completely shut out of the global vaccine campaign.
15-Feb-2021 South Korea became the latest country to exclude people aged 65 years and older from inoculation with AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine because of a lack of data proving its efficacy in the elderly, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said on Monday.
15-Feb-2021 Average daily new coronavirus cases in the US have dipped below 100,000 for the first time in months. It stayed below 100,000 on Saturday. The seven-day rolling average of new infections was well above 200,000 for much of December and went to roughly 250,000 in January, according to Johns Hopkins University.
15-Feb-2021 Myanmar's internet has been cut overnight on Sunday, hours after armoured vehicles rolled into three major cities. Additionally, the military released thousands of criminals from prison to carry out nighttime violence and stir up panic. Hundreds of thousands of protesters rallied against the military for the ninth day in a row.
14-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,872 compared to 2,415 yesterday; deaths were 41 compared to 48 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 964 compared to 969 yesterday.
14-Feb-2021 The European Union will fast track approvals of coronavirus vaccines adapted to combat mutations, the bloc's Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said in a newspaper interview on Sunday. "We have now decided that a vaccine that has been improved by the manufacturer on the basis of the previous vaccine to combat new mutations no longer has to go through the entire approval process," she told Bavaria's Augsburger Allgemeine.
14-Feb-2021 The White House on Saturday called on China to make available data from the earliest days of the COVID-19 outbreak, saying it has "deep concerns" about the way the findings of the World Health Organization's COVID-19 report were communicated.
13-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,415 compared to 2,550 yesterday; deaths were 48 compared to 77 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 969 compared to 973 yesterday.
13-Feb-2021 Infections worldwide are approaching 108 million, with deaths near 2.5 million. However, daily numbers in both categories are trending downward.
13-Feb-2021 How long does natural protection from a first infection last? According to one study from Public Health England (PHE) released in January, which looked at hospital staff, the median interval between the first infection and reinfection was more than 160 days – about five months. Meanwhile, a study from Qatar suggests protection by natural immunity of about 95% efficacy lasts about seven months.
12-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,550 compared to 2,644 yesterday; deaths were 77 compared to 65 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 973 compared to 958 yesterday.
12-Feb-2021 The County of Maramures has entered "Code Red" with the 2nd highest infection rate in Romania. The cities of Baia Mare and Sighet are included in cities under quarantine. Restrictions include limited travel in and out of each locality.
12-Feb-2021 People who have received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine have been found to have strong T-cell responses against the Kent and South African variants of Covid, suggesting that the vaccine will continue to protect against serious disease in the coming months.
12-Feb-2021 As vaccine demand continues to far outpace supply, the nation's leading infectious disease expert made a stunning prediction. "By the time we get to April…virtually everybody and anybody in any category can start to get vaccinated," Dr. Anthony Fauci said.
11-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,644 compared to 3,048 yesterday; deaths were 65 compared to 79 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 958 compared to 955 yesterday.
11-Feb-2021 Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Wednesday that five of the city's COVID-19 vaccine sites — including Dodger Stadium — will close due to a lack of supplies, CBS Los Angeles reports. By Thursday, the city will have exhausted its supply of Moderna vaccines for first doses.
11-Feb-2021 Making sure a mask fits snugly on the face and use of two masks is likely to significantly reduce a person's exposure to the coronavirus, laboratory experiments described by U.S. health officials on Wednesday showed. They found coronavirus exposure was reduced by 82.2% when double-masking.
11-Feb-2021 Merck & Co Inc said on Wednesday it was in talks with governments and companies to potentially help with manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines that have been already authorized. The drugmaker said it also planned to focus on the accelerated scale up of production of its investigational therapeutic candidates, MK-4482 and MK-7110, which it now calls molnupiravir.
11-Feb-2021 A cheap and widely available asthma drug appears to significantly reduce the risk of people getting seriously ill with Covid-19, if it is taken within the first week of developing symptoms, research suggests. Inhaled budesonide – which both stops people from getting worse and shortens the length of their illness – could become the first treatment in the early stages of infection.
11-Feb-2021 It has been three weeks since Joe Biden's inauguration and Benjamin Netanyahu has yet to receive a call from the White House. The Israeli prime minister has let it be known he is not happy but he is waiting by the phone.
11-Feb-2021 The Palestinian Authority is using stones from Joshua's Altar located on Mount Ebal to help build a road connecting an Arab village to the city of Nablus, or Shechem, website N12 reports on Wednesday. In a video obtained by N12, Arab workers can be heard saying they are destroying part of the site and using it for gravel to make the road.
10-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,048 compared to 2,797 yesterday; deaths were 79 compared to 95 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 955 compared to 937 yesterday.
10-Feb-2021 Eli Lilly's combination antibody therapy to fight COVID-19 has been granted emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Lilly said on Tuesday. Lilly's combination therapy of two antibodies, bamlanivimab and etesevimab, helped cut the risk of hospitalization and death in COVID-19 patients by 70%, data from a late-stage trial showed in January.
10-Feb-2021 California surpassed New York on Tuesday as the U.S. state with the most coronavirus deaths, a grim reminder of the pandemic's toll even as the vaccine rollout and a sharp drop in new cases buoyed hopes of life eventually returning to normal.
10-Feb-2021 People may need to get vaccinated against Covid-19 annually for the next several years, Johnson & Johnson chief executive Alex Gorsky told CNBC on Tuesday, due to mutations to the virus.
09-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,797 compared to 1,319 yesterday; deaths were 95 compared to 80 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 937 compared to 958 yesterday.
09-Feb-2021 The United States reported a 25% drop in new cases of COVID-19 to about 825,000 last week, the biggest fall since the pandemic started, although health officials said they were worried new variants of the virus could slow or reverse this progress.
09-Feb-2021 The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine offers as little as 10% protection against the Covid variant first seen in South Africa, researchers have suggested. South Africa has halted the rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab. The news has caused concern that the vaccines now available will prove insufficient to end the crisis on their own and manufacturers are already working on new versions that will offer protection against variants.
08-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,319 compared to 1,975 yesterday; deaths were 80 compared to 72 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 958 compared to 966 yesterday.
08-Feb-2021 The United States reported 96,003 new coronavirus cases Sunday, the first day the U.S. has seen under 100,000 new cases since Nov. 2, according to the COVID Tracking Project.
08-Feb-2021 Vaccination drives hold out the promise of curbing Covid-19, but governments and businesses are increasingly accepting what epidemiologists have long warned: The pathogen will circulate for years, or even decades, leaving society to coexist with Covid-19 much as it does with other endemic diseases like flu, measles, and HIV.
08-Feb-2021 France reported a fall in new COVID-19 infections on Sunday for the fourth successive day. Health ministry data showed there had been 19,175 new confirmed COVID-19 infections in the past 24 hours compared with 20,586 the previous day. However, in an ominous trend, the proportion of Covid-19 infections accounted for by the so-called UK variant is increasing exponentially in France – by 50% a week.
08-Feb-2021 Tens of thousands of people rallied across Myanmar on Sunday to denounce last week's coup and demand the release of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in the biggest protests since the 2007 Saffron Revolution that helped lead to democratic reforms.
08-Feb-2021 As millions of Americans struggle to recover from Covid-19 and millions more scramble for the protection offered by vaccines, U.S. health officials are being accused of overlooking an unsettling subgroup of survivors: those who get infected more than once. Fewer than 50 cases have been confirmed worldwide, but in the State of Washington alone, more than 700 cases that meet the criteria for reinfection have been documented, but genetic material to confirm a diagnosis is not available due to procedural issues.
08-Feb-2021 Leading vaccine scientists are calling for a rethink of the goals of vaccination programs, saying that herd immunity through vaccination is unlikely to be possible because of the emergence of variants like that in South Africa. The comments came as the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca acknowledged that their vaccine will not protect people against mild to moderate Covid illness caused by the South African variant.
07-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,975 compared to 2,611 yesterday; deaths were 72 compared to 61 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 966 compared to 963 yesterday.
07-Feb-2021 Confirmed cases in the U.S. surged to 27 million over the weekend, with deaths nearing the half million mark. Meanwhile, more COVID-19 vaccination megasites opened this week across the country, including at a casino in Missouri and at Yankee Stadium in New York — where a long line formed as it opened on Friday to local residents.
07-Feb-2021 Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Myanmar's cities on Saturday, and again today, to denounce this week's coup and demand the release of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi despite a blockade on the internet by the junta. Monitoring group NetBlocks Internet Observatory reported a "national-scale internet blackout", saying on Twitter that connectivity had fallen to 16% of usual levels.
06-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,611 compared to 2,580 yesterday; deaths were 61 compared to 73 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 963 compared to 954 yesterday.
06-Feb-2021 The number of confirmed cases worldwide has now exceeded 105 million. The U.S. still accounts for more than one-fourth of the total, with more than one million new infections each week. Another record, 5,078 deaths from COVID-19, was registered in the U.S. on Thursday
06-Feb-2021 Researchers at Tel Aviv's Ichilov Hospital have discovered that a new cancer drug has been successfully used to treat patients seriously ill with the coronavirus, Kan News reported Friday. 29 of 30 patients treated with the new cancer drug recovered after being seriously ill with coronavirus.
06-Feb-2021 In a landslide vote (97-3) Thursday, the Senate approved a budget resolution amendment making the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem permanent, so that it could not be moved out of Israel's capital in the future. The three objectors were Democratic Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Tom Carper.
05-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,580 compared to 2,668 yesterday; deaths were 73 compared to 75 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 954 compared to 984 yesterday.
05-Feb-2021 A panel of South Korean advisers has urged caution over the use of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine for people older than 65. The advice comes in the wake of news that several European nations plan to restrict the vaccine to younger people, or are considering doing so, because of insufficient data on its efficacy in the elderly.
05-Feb-2021 A cheap drug, colchicine, normally used to treat gout, has been found to have the potential to significantly reduce hospital stays among Covid-19 patients and the need for extra oxygen.
05-Feb-2021 Johnson and Johnson is seeking FDA approval for a coronavirus vaccine known as JNJ-78436735 or Ad26.COV2.S which differs significantly from other current vaccines which are mRNA-based. The Johnson and Johnson vaccine is double-stranded DNA-based, a step further in genetic manipulation.
04-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,668 compared to 2,752 yesterday; deaths were 75 compared to 87 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 984 compared to 1,006 yesterday.
03-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,752 compared to 2,676 yesterday; deaths were 87 compared to 111 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,006 compared to 967 yesterday.
03-Feb-2021 Results show the Oxford-AstraZenenca vaccine may reduce the spread of coronavirus. Matt Hancock said the study shows "vaccines are the way out of this pandemic". It is the first time a vaccine has been shown to reduce transmission of the virus.
03-Feb-2021 Russia's homegrown Sputnik V vaccine showed high levels of efficacy and safety in a peer-reviewed study, handing Moscow a geopolitical coup and a potential slice of the multibillion-dollar vaccine market as it seeks to promote the Covid-19 shot abroad and curb the pandemic at home. A large-scale clinical trial published in the British medical journal the Lancet, demonstrated that the two-shot vaccine was 91.6% effective in preventing symptomatic Covid-19 and offered complete protection against severe cases.
03-Feb-2021 Almost all people previously infected with COVID-19 have high levels of antibodies for at least six months that are likely to protect them from reinfection with the disease, results of a major U.K. study showed on Wednesday.
03-Feb-2021 Staff at 70 hospitals and medical departments in 30 towns across Myanmar stopped work on Wednesday to protest against the coup that ousted elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the newly formed Myanmar Civil Disobedience Movement said.
03-Feb-2021 Two COVID-19 vaccines from Chinese companies including Sinopharm triggered immunity against a highly transmissible coronavirus variant first found in South Africa, but their effect appeared weaker, a small-sample lab study released on Tuesday showed.
03-Feb-2021 The great hope for drug treatments against Covid-19 – the monoclonal antibodies – are failing against variants of the virus, such as those that have emerged in South Africa and Brazil, scientists have found.
02-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,676 compared to 1,313 yesterday; deaths were 111 compared to 67 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 967 compared to 971 yesterday.
02-Feb-2021 Multiple studies have shown that even asymptomatic patients can have irregular lung scans. A couple of small studies have found cardiac issues in student athletes, including those with asymptomatic infections. And a study looking at asymptomatic and mild cases of Covid in children found signs of possible small blood vessel damage.
02-Feb-2021 Last September, India was confirming nearly 100,000 new coronavirus cases a day. But four months later, India's coronavirus numbers have plummeted. Late last month, on Jan. 26, the country's Health Ministry confirmed a record low of about 9,100 new daily cases. Scientists say the cause is a mystery. They're trying to figure out what Indians may be doing right and how to mimic that in other countries that are still suffering.
02-Feb-2021 Israel's vaccination programme is showing signs of working to drive down infections and illness in the over-60s. The fall appears to be most pronounced in older people and areas furthest ahead in their immunization efforts. This suggests it is the vaccine, and not just the country's current lockdown, taking effect.
01-Feb-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,313 compared to 1,825 yesterday; deaths were 67 compared to 71 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 971 compared to 997 yesterday.
01-Feb-2021 Timetables for vaccinating enough people to effectively curb Covid-19 are slipping in many countries, raising fears that a large portion of the world will still be battling the pandemic and its economic effects well into 2022 or beyond. Places from Germany to Mexico are running into serious problems sourcing sufficient vaccines. At the current rates of vaccination, only about 10% of the world would be inoculated by the end of the year and 21% by the close of 2022.
01-Feb-2021 A leading infectious disease expert, Epidemiologist Michael Osterholm, predicted on Sunday that the deadlier British variant of Covid-19 will become the dominant strain of the virus in the U.S. and could hit the country like a hurricane. The new U.K. variant may be 30% more deadly than the original virus.
01-Feb-2021 Myanmar's military seized power in a coup against the democratically elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. She and other members of her party were detained in a Monday morning raid. Tensions have been rising for days over the results of a November election that Ms. Suu Kyi's party won by a landslide.
31-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,825 compared to 2,668 yesterday; deaths were 71 compared to 68 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 997 compared to 1,018 yesterday.
31-Jan-2021 Lebanon ambulance driver: "Hospitals can't take our Covid patients." First it was an economic collapse, then the Beirut blast, and now coronavirus. Lebanon has seen a record number of infections and deaths in recent weeks after the authorities relaxed restrictions over the festive period. Now they're enforcing one of the world's strictest curfews as the country's hospitals reach the breaking point.
31-Jan-2021 Johnson and Johnson has released its "one-shot" COVID-19 vaccine, but reported that it is not as effective as those released by Pfizer or Moderna, however the vaccine is 100% effective where it matters most: preventing hospitalizations and deaths.
31-Jan-2021 Top non-COVID news:
Palestinian Islamic leaders issued a religious edict banning Muslims from supporting the Abraham Accords that established peace between Israel and Arab countries. "Only Palestinians are the true sons of Abraham."
The entire Trump legal defense team walked away from the impeachment trial only days before it is scheduled to begin.
GameStop day traders have thrown Walk Street into chaos in an unprecedented "insurgency" against the "super rich", but ironically, the world's richest man – Elon Musk – is a Twitter sympathizer of the movement.
Russian police issued stern warnings against participating in anti-Putin protests planned for today. The Metro (subway system) is closed and other restrictions are in place. Moscow police have reportedly been struggling to find space in jail for supporters of the opposition leader.
30-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,668 compared to 2,737 yesterday; deaths were 68 compared to 91 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,018 compared to 996 yesterday.
30-Jan-2021 Confirmed cases in the U.S. are now more than 26 million, more than one-fourth of all cases worldwide.
30-Jan-2021 French PM Jean Castex has announced tough new Covid-19 border restrictions, but has again resisted imposing a new nationwide lockdown. From Sunday all but essential travel from outside of the EU will be banned. Testing requirements from inside the EU will also be tightened.
30-Jan-2021 Johnson & Johnson has released the results of its phase three COVID-19 vaccine trial and plans to seek emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration. Results demonstrated 85% protection against severe coronavirus disease in adults of all ages and racial groups 28 days after vaccination.
30-Jan-2021 Kosovo's Foreign Minister on Friday said a formal ceremony will be held next week to establish diplomatic ties with Israel, The Associated Press reports. Meliza Haradinaj-Stublla, said she and her Israeli counterpart Gabi Ashkenazi would hold a virtual ceremony on February 1.
30-Jan-2021 Some recent studies confirm that SARS-CoV-2 is one of the viruses, along with other types of coronaviruses, that can be killed by ultraviolet light rays. However, although it's been proven that ultraviolet-C light can kill the coronavirus in controlled research environments using specific doses, there's no guarantee that a lamp will, and ultraviolet light lamps could hurt your eyes.
29-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,737 compared to 2,901 yesterday; deaths were 91 compared to 90 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 996 compared to 989 yesterday.
29-Jan-2021 Moldova, Europe's poorest country, has not been able to deliver a single jab yet because it can't afford to buy the vaccine. Most western European governments have already vaccinated frontline workers and are moving into the second phase of their rollout, even if production problems are now undermining supplies.
29-Jan-2021 France's health ministry has announced supplies of the Moderna vaccine expected during February will be reduced by 25%. Elsewhere, a shortage of vaccines has forced Paris and two other regions – that together account for a third of the French population – to postpone giving out some first doses.
29-Jan-2021 Germany is likely to face a shortage of coronavirus vaccines until at least April, the country's health minister has warned. "We will still have at least 10 tough weeks with a shortage," Jens Spahn wrote on Twitter.
29-Jan-2021 AstraZeneca PLC Chief Executive Pascal Soriot promised to churn out more Covid-19 vaccines, at a lower price, than any of his big pharma competitors. Now, a production problem at a single factory in Belgium has delayed tens of millions of doses destined for Europe, endangering the continent's already-slow inoculation drive and representing the greatest threat so far to Dr. Soriot's extraordinary pledge last year to vaccinate the world—and do so for no profit.
29-Jan-2021 Novavax Inc said on Thursday its coronavirus vaccine was 89.3% effective in preventing COVID-19 in a trial conducted in the United Kingdom, and was nearly as effective in protecting against the more highly contagious variant first discovered in the UK, according to a preliminary analysis. However, the vaccine was only 60% effective against the South African variant.
29-Jan-2021 Mexico on Thursday surpassed India in confirmed Covid-19 deaths, giving the Latin American country the third-highest toll worldwide, according to a Reuters tally of official data. Mexico's health ministry reported 18,670 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infections and 1,506 additional fatalities, bringing the total to 1,825,519 cases and 155,145 deaths.
28-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,901 compared to 3,174 yesterday; deaths were 90 compared to 77 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 989 compared to 1,025 yesterday.
27-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,174 compared to 2,877 yesterday; deaths were 77 compared to 97 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,025 compared to 1,002 yesterday.
27-Jan-2021 Israeli healthcare fund Maccabi announced Monday evening that just 0.01% of people vaccinated with both doses of the Pfizer vaccine develop symptoms of COVID-19. Out of 128,000 Israelis who received both jabs of the vaccine from Maccabi, just 20 became sick with the coronavirus.
27-Jan-2021 Only about one in 10 companies expect all employees to return to their pre-pandemic work arrangements, according to a new survey. The National Association for Business Economics found that just 11 percent of survey respondents expect all staff at their firms to eventually return. Around 65 percent of companies have already allowed "most" or "all" of their staff to work from home.
27-Jan-2021 The world's biggest pharmaceutical firms are little prepared for the next pandemic despite a mounting response to the Covid-19 outbreak, an independent report has warned. Netherlands-based Access to Medicine Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation funded by the UK and Dutch governments and others, highlighted an outbreak of the Nipah virus in China, with a fatality rate of up to 75%, as potentially the next big pandemic risk. "Nipah could blow any moment. The next pandemic could be a drug-resistant infection."
27-Jan-2021 The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine may be authorised only for younger people in Europe, because there is insufficient data on how well it works in the over-65s, the head of the regulatory body has suggested. There are published claims in German newspapers that the efficacy of the vaccine may only be 8% in the over-65 age group.
26-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,877 compared to 1,551 yesterday; deaths were 97 compared to 65 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,002 compared to 1,017 yesterday.
26-Jan-2021 The official count worldwide has now passed 100 million confirmed cases.
26-Jan-2021 Delays in Covid-19 vaccine deliveries and uncertainties about the prospects of yet-to-be-approved shots mean Europe is unlikely to have inoculated a substantial portion of its population by the summer, raising the specter of many more months of lockdowns and other restrictions.
26-Jan-2021 The United States reported a 21% drop in new cases of COVID-19 last week, as all but one state reported declines in new infections, and the number of coronavirus patients in hospitals also fell.
26-Jan-2021 Moderna is tweaking its coronavirus vaccine to make it more effective against emerging variants of the virus, the company announced Monday. The upgrades will be designed to better protect against the different strains and could be used as a booster shot.
26-Jan-2021 One in eight people who have had Covid-19 are diagnosed with their first psychiatric or neurological illness within six months of testing positive for the virus, a new analysis suggests. Some studies show the proportion to be even larger.
25-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,551 compared to 1,816 yesterday; deaths were 65 compared to 54 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,017 compared to 1,020 yesterday.
25-Jan-2021 The number of coronavirus cases worldwide has passed 99 million, according to Johns Hopkins University, as the total moves rapidly towards 100 million people infected with Covid-19 in just over a year.
25-Jan-2021 The ongoing coronavirus crisis has made getting a good night's rest significantly harder. Some experts even have a term for it: 'coronasomnia' or 'Covid-somnia'. This is the phenomenon that's hit people all over the world as they experience insomnia linked to the stress of life during Covid-19. Daily routines and environments have been disrupted, making it hard to keep the circadian rhythm intact.
25-Jan-2021 In a bit of good news: Eleven workers trapped for two weeks inside a Chinese gold mine were brought safely to the surface on Sunday, two weeks earlier than originally projected.
25-Jan-2021 President Joe Biden on Monday will reinstate the Covid-19 travel restrictions on non-US citizens who have been in Brazil, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and much of Europe, a White House official confirmed Sunday. Biden will also extend the restrictions to travelers who have recently been to South Africa, the official said.
25-Jan-2021 The emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus mutations detected in the UK, South Africa and Brazil is equivalent to the beginning of a new epidemic, this "diabolical" virus being able to find ways to circumvent new treatment methods, says the chief scientific adviser of the Government of Paris, Jean-François Delfraissy.
25-Jan-2021 France needs to enter into a third lockdown because of the spread of new coronavirus variants in the country, the government's top medical adviser on Covid-19 policy stated.
24-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,816 compared to 2,719 yesterday; deaths were 54 compared to 94 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,020 compared to 1,016 yesterday.
24-Jan-2021 Global confirmed infections of COVID-19 surpassed the 98 million mark, and will exceed 100 million cases within the next few days. The U.S. continues to lead worldwide statistics with more than triple the daily number reported by 2nd place Brazil, and more than 25 million confirmed cases.
24-Jan-2021 A small group of rich countries — comprising just 16 percent of the world's population — have locked up 60 percent of the global vaccine supply, according to Duke University's Global Health Institute. Such 'vaccine nationalism' could actually prolong the Covid-19 pandemic.
24-Jan-2021 Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Saturday night held discussions on the issue of whether to close Ben Gurion International Airport and will submit a proposal to the government on Sunday. Under the proposal, flights to and from Israel will be halted for two weeks in order to prevent additional mutations of the novel coronavirus from entering Israel.
23-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,719 compared to 2,699 yesterday; deaths were 94 compared to 74 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,016 compared to 997 yesterday. The infection rate was 10.2%
23-Jan-2021 Data released by Israel's Health Ministry on Friday showed that coronavirus infection numbers are starting to drop as the number of Israelis vaccinated against the disease continues to rise. As of Friday morning, 2.4 million of Israel's 9.3 million citizens have received the vaccination, with 851,000 already inoculated with the two doses required.
23-Jan-2021 AstraZeneca Plc has informed European Union officials on Friday it would cut deliveries of its COVID-19 vaccine to the bloc by 60% to 31 million doses in the first quarter of the year due to production problems, a senior official told Reuters. Similar production shortfalls have been experienced in other countries, most notably the U.S.
23-Jan-2021 Los Angeles County had some good news Friday. New coronavirus cases decreased this week by 30 percent and the test positivity rate dropped to 12.7 percent from nearly 21 percent earlier in the month, public health officials said.
23-Jan-2021 Germany has passed 50,000 Covid deaths, France was told it may soon need a third national lockdown and Belgium and Ireland warned that it was too early to think about easing restrictions as the pandemic continues to hold Europe in its grip.
23-Jan-2021 The new UK coronavirus variant may be 30% more deadly. In findings that dampened hopes of the increasingly prevalent B117 variant becoming less lethal over time, researchers on the government's New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag) concluded that it may increase the death rate by 30%-40%.
23-Jan-2021 The United States could see additional Covid-19 vaccines by the end of March, if not sooner. Johnson & Johnson is the most likely to next seek emergency use authorization from the FDA. Another candidate from Novavax expects to have results by early first quarter of this year.
23-Jan-2021 Bee species around the world are facing devastating declines, and researchers are warning that we are running out of time to save them. According to new research, up to 25% of known bee species haven't been reported in global records since the 1990s. Bees are necessary to the yield of about 85% of all cultivated crops.
22-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,699 compared to 2,878 yesterday; deaths were 74 compared to 69 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 997 compared to 1,005 yesterday. The infection rate was 9.1%
22-Jan-2021 The devastating fall and winter wave of coronavirus infections that is causing so much misery across the U.S. appears to have finally peaked, according to several researchers who are closely tracking the virus. The number of new daily infections in the current wave appears to have hit a high in the past week or two and has been steadily declining in most states since, the researchers say.
22-Jan-2021 In the U.K., Boris Johnson raised fears that tough Covid restrictions could continue well into the spring and beyond. Johnson's spokesperson declined to rule out the lockdown remaining in place until summer.
22-Jan-2021 Anthony Fauci, who is serving as President Biden's chief medical adviser for the Covid-19 pandemic, is reprising a role he has played in previous U.S. administrations over four decades, on issues including AIDS and the Ebola virus. Dr. Fauci's once-frequent appearances at White House briefings last year essentially ended in the final months of the Trump administration.
22-Jan-2021 The U.S. is moving to assert a leading role in the global effort to end the coronavirus pandemic, restoring its ties with the World Health Organization and pledging to contribute to a world-wide vaccination drive.
22-Jan-2021 The European Commission proposed to EU leaders on Thursday identifying "dark red" coronavirus hot spots from which all but essential travel would be discouraged after a meeting to discuss the mounting challenge from more infectious virus variants. "Persons travelling from dark red areas could be required to do a test before departure, as well as to undergo quarantine after arrival. We can't rule out border closures."
22-Jan-2021 Besides fighting COVID-19, Croats learned last year how nature could show its brutal face as two devastating earthquakes left them struggling to repair their homes and living in fear of further shakes. About 90% of Croats live in the property they own, but less than 25% have earthquake insurance.
22-Jan-2021 Mask up or you won't be allowed to board a plane, train or bus. President Biden signed an executive order Thursday, requiring passengers to wear face coverings during interstate travel. It's one of 10 executive orders signed by the president today aimed at addressing the COVID-19 pandemic.
22-Jan-2021 The former head of the Vatican bank, Angelo Caloia, has been sentenced to nearly nine years in prison for money laundering and aggravated embezzlement. The 81-year-old was handed an eight year, 11 month jail term on Thursday, making him the highest-ranking Vatican official to be convicted of a financial crime.
21-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,878 compared to 3,000 yesterday; deaths were 69 compared to 116 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,005 compared to 1,054 yesterday. The infection rate was 9.6%
21-Jan-2021 Some British hospitals look like war zones with doctors struggling to cope with an influx of patients infected with COVID-19, the government's top scientific adviser said, as the death toll rose by a record daily amount towards 100,000.
21-Jan-2021 Innovative Israeli genome editing treatment destroys cancer cells: [LINK]
21-Jan-2021 One year ago, the first coronavirus case in the United States was confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Jan. 20, 2020, a man in Washington state tested positive for the virus after returning from Wuhan, China, the then-epicenter of the outbreak.
20-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: Total cases have now exceeded 700,000. The number of new infections was 3,000 compared to 2,745 yesterday; deaths were 116 compared to 98 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,054 compared to 1,050 yesterday. The infection rate was 9.1%
20-Jan-2021 Israel's coronavirus tsar has warned that a single dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine may be providing less protection than originally hoped. By contrast, those who had received their second dose of the Pfizer vaccine had a six- to 12-fold increase in antibodies, according to data released by Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer on Monday. Israel's daily corona count spiked to 10,022 cases on Monday despite a lockdown that has gone on nearly two weeks. Israel's government is deciding on Tuesday whether to extend the lockdown.
20-Jan-2021 More than 211,000 children were reported to have Covid-19 between Jan. 7 and Jan. 14, in the largest weekly increase since the pandemic began in the U.S., according to the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association. More than 2.5 million U.S. children have tested positive for Covid-19 since the pandemic started.
20-Jan-2021 Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday that Germany is extending its pandemic restrictions, including the closure of schools and stores, until mid-February amid concerns that new mutations of the coronavirus could trigger a fresh surge in cases.
20-Jan-2021 The UK has reported the highest number of daily deaths since the pandemic started, as new data showed one in eight people are likely to have had the virus in England, PA Media reports.
20-Jan-2021 New Zealand's director general of health has warned that Covid-19 is unlikely to ever die out, even with vaccination efforts, but it could become more transmissible and less deadly, similar to the seasonal flu.
19-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,745 compared to 1,509 yesterday; deaths were 98 compared to 50 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,050 compared to 1,084 yesterday. The infection rate was 9.6%
19-Jan-2021 France's average daily new COVID-19 infections hit a six-and-a-half week high of 18,270 on Monday, while the number of people being treated in intensive care units for the disease rose above 2,800 for the first time in a month.
19-Jan-2021 As the COVID-19 vaccine rolls out, three big questions loom. First, can someone who has been vaccinated still spread the disease? Second, will the vaccine remain effective as the virus itself evolves? And third, how long will the vaccine's protection last? The answer from experts to all three questions: "We don't know yet."
19-Jan-2021 Nearly a third of people who were discharged from hospitals in England after being treated for Covid-19 were readmitted within five months – and almost one in eight died, a study suggests. The research also found a higher risk of problems developing in a range of organs after hospital discharge in those younger than 70 and ethnic minority individuals. The UK had the highest Covid death toll in the world in the week ending January 17th.
19-Jan-2021 California's state epidemiologist is urging a halt to more than 300,000 coronavirus vaccine doses by Moderna because some people who received it needed medical treatment for possible severe allergic reactions. Dr. Erica S. Pan said that fewer than 10 people who were inoculated at a single vaccination site needed medical attention.
19-Jan-2021 Also from California: The lack of storage space for those who have died of the coronavirus forced the agency which regulates air quality across the Southland to issue an emergency order Sunday night lifting the limit on the number of cremations allowed.
18-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,509 compared to 2,156 yesterday; deaths were 50 compared to 57 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,084 compared to 1,076 yesterday. The infection rate was 17.0%
18-Jan-2021 President-elect Joe Biden's goal of delivering 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine within the first 100 days of his presidency "is absolutely a doable thing," Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on Sunday.
18-Jan-2021 Russia reported 22,857 new coronavirus cases on Monday, including 3,679 in Moscow, taking the national tally – the world's fourth highest – to 3,591,066. Authorities said 471 people had died from the virus in the last 24 hours, pushing Russia's official death toll to 66,037.
18-Jan-2021 The number of confirmed cases in the U.S. has surpassed 24 million. The total worldwide is now 95 million, with more than 700,000 new cases being added every day. More than a third of new cases are in the U.S.
17-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 2,156 compared to 3,218 yesterday; deaths were 57 compared to 66 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,076 compared to 1,089 yesterday. The infection rate was 14.5%
17-Jan-2021 Los Angeles on Saturday became the first county in the nation to record 1 million coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic. The state of California is also reporting staggering numbers with more than 2.9 million confirmed cases. Texas, with 2 million cases, and Florida, with 1.5 million, are the next two states with the most infections.
16-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,218 compared to 3,353 yesterday; deaths were 66 compared to 63 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,089 compared to 1,091 yesterday. The infection rate was 14.3%
16-Jan-2021 The worldwide coronavirus death toll surpassed 2 million on Friday, according to a Reuters tally, as nations around the world are trying to procure multiple vaccines and detect new COVID-19 variants. Total infections stand at 93.5 million.
16-Jan-2021 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the "world's largest" vaccination campaign on Saturday as the populous nation tries to bring the COVID-19 pandemic under control starting with two locally-manufactured shots.
16-Jan-2021 U.S. President-elect Joe Biden's incoming chief of staff Ron Klain said on Friday he expects the United States to hit 500,000 COVID-19 deaths next month. The current death toll in the U.S. is over 400,000 with more than 23 million confirmed cases.
16-Jan-2021 The coronavirus pandemic appears to have shortened the average life expectancy in the United States, according to new research. The deaths caused by COVID-19 have reduced overall life expectancy by 1.13 years, according to the analysis by researchers at the University of Southern California and Princeton University. That would be the largest single-year decline in life expectancy in the past 40 years.
16-Jan-2021 The U.K. is to close all travel corridors from Monday, to protect against the risk of new strains of coronavirus, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told a news conference Friday.
15-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,353 compared to 3,525 yesterday; deaths were 63 compared to 66 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,091 compared to 1,101 yesterday. The infection rate was 10.7% This is the lowest percentage since the beginning of October.
15-Jan-2021 The number of coronavirus infections in Germany rose above 2 million, and the number of deaths reached almost 45,000, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Friday.
15-Jan-2021 As coronavirus continues to tear across the U.S. without any sign of slowing down, officials have warned there is a "full resurgence" in most major population centers – and that the country could see an additional 92,000 deaths in less than a month.
15-Jan-2021 More than 90% of participants in an early safety study of Johnson and Johnson's one-shot coronavirus vaccine made immune proteins within 29 days of receiving the vaccine, Time reported. All formed antibodies within 57 days, according to the report, and the immune response lasted for the full 71 days of the trial.
15-Jan-2021 The recorded death count from the Covid-19 pandemic as of Thursday is nearing 2 million. The true extent is far worse. More than 2.8 million people have lost their lives due to the pandemic, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of data from 59 countries and jurisdictions. This tally offers the most comprehensive view yet of the pandemic's global impact. Deaths in these places last year surged more than 12% above average levels.
15-Jan-2021 Israel has been praised around the world for the fast rollout of its vaccine. In three weeks' time, it has vaccinated some 22% of its population. It expects to vaccinate the entire population by March. However, the new variants of the disease, of which the U.K. version is responsible for 2,000 daily cases in Israel and is expected to become the dominant strain soon, have forced Israel to reimpose a stiff lockdown on its citizens, reduce public transportation and close businesses.
15-Jan-2021 Included on the New York Times list of "52 places to love in 2021" is a country they described as "beautiful and innocent" — Iran. This is not a typographical error as the publisher also listed Iran in 2019's "52 places to go" (pre-pandemic), but ironically deemed it "too dangerous" at the time for their staff to actually go there. Israel is not on the list.
14-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,525 compared to 4,424 yesterday; deaths were 66 compared to 88 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,101 compared to 1,081 yesterday. The infection rate was 10.8%
14-Jan-2021 The second year of the COVID-19 pandemic may be tougher than the first given how the new coronavirus is spreading, especially in the northern hemisphere as more infectious variants circulate, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.
14-Jan-2021 U.K. Scientists are sending the U.S. a warning: What's happening right now in the United Kingdom with the new coronavirus variant could likely happen in the U.S., and the country has a short window to prepare. Studies suggest the new variant increases the transmissibility by about 50%.
14-Jan-2021 The EU has warned that the highly contagious coronavirus variant first found in Britain is now having "a significant impact" in other European countries, and said its spread "must be stopped at all costs". Stella Kyriakides, the bloc's health commissioner, said on Wednesday: "We cannot let it get out of hand.
14-Jan-2021 Total cases in the U.S. are now over 23 million. The coronavirus claimed more than 4,300 lives on Tuesday, another one-day high, amid further signs that pandemic fatigue is likely to lead to further spread of the virus. Against this background there are signs that compliance with quarantine rules is collapsing in some states.
13-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,424 compared to 3,697 yesterday; deaths were 88 compared to 156 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,081 compared to 1,073 yesterday. The infection rate was 15.6%
13-Jan-2021 Nearly all air travelers will need to present a negative coronavirus test to enter the United States under expanded test testing requirements announced on Tuesday. Under the rules taking effect Jan. 26, nearly all travelers including U.S. citizens must show a negative test within three days of departure or documentation of recovery from COVID-19, under an order signed by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield.
13-Jan-2021 Trust in governments, business chiefs and media is crumbling amid a perceived mis-handling by leaders of the coronavirus pandemic and a widespread feeling among ordinary citizens that they are being misled, a global survey has found. The Edelman Trust Barometer, which for two decades has polled thousands of people on their trust in core institutions, found 57% of people believe government leaders, business chiefs and journalists are spreading falsehoods or exaggerations.
13-Jan-2021 The Italian health ministry has been criticised after a draft of the country's new pandemic plan revealed medics would be permitted to choose which patients receive life-saving care. Page 25 of the plan reads: "The imbalance between needs and available resources may make it necessary to adopt criteria for triage in access to therapies," and therefore "scarce resources could be allocated in order to provide necessary preferential treatment to those patients who are most likely to benefit".
13-Jan-2021 A coronavirus vaccine developed by China's Sinovac company has been found to be only 50.4% effective in Brazilian clinical trials, according to the latest results released by researchers – barely over the 50% needed for regulatory approval.
12-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,697 compared to 1,987 yesterday; deaths were 156 compared to 71 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,073 compared to 1,083 yesterday. The infection rate was 15.6%
12-Jan-2021 America has reported its deadliest week yet in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. More than 22,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 just last week — setting the record for the second week in a row. California is the nation's hot spot with more than 10,000 deaths in the past month.
12-Jan-2021 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel would push the pace of coronavirus vaccination shots to about one million a week and would have Israel's adult population inoculated by March.
12-Jan-2021 At least two members of congress have tested positive for COVID-19 after sheltering in place with fellow lawmakers during the attack on the U.S. Capitol last week. It is believed they were exposed while sheltering in place alongside colleagues, including some who refused to wear masks.
11-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,987 compared to 3,082 yesterday; deaths were 71 compared to 62 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,083 compared to 1,065 yesterday. The infection rate was 28.4%
11-Jan-2021 Confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally will surpass 90 million today, with deaths rapidly approaching the 2 million mark. The U.S. is adding, on average, more than 271,000 new cases per day, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Over the past 24 hours, 3,700 new deaths were recorded.
10-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,082 compared to 4,403 yesterday; deaths were 62 compared to 86 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,065 compared to 1,100 yesterday. The infection rate was 19.5%
10-Jan-2021 For the second straight day, the U.S. reported a record number of coronavirus cases, according to NBC News' tally of national data. The nation reported 278,920 new Covid-19 cases Saturday, surpassing Friday's one-day record of 269,420.
09-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,403 compared to 4,841 yesterday; deaths were 86 compared to 96 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,100 compared to 1,100 yesterday. The infection rate was 15.6%
09-Jan-2021 A further 68,053 confirmed cases were announced by the U.K. Government on Friday — the highest single day figure so far — making it the eleventh day in a row that more than 50,000 new cases had been reported.
09-Jan-2021 The spread of Covid in London is "out of control" according to Sadiq Khan, who has declared a "major incident". A major incident is defined as an event or situation with a range of serious consequences which requires special arrangements to be implemented by one or more emergency responder agencies.
09-Jan-2021 The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine can still target a key mutation that has emerged in two new variants of coronavirus, laboratory studies show. However, this is only one of many mutations that are found in the new forms of the virus. So while the study has been welcomed, it is not being seen as definitive scientific evidence about how the vaccine will perform.
09-Jan-2021 More than 4,000 people died in the US on Thursday, Johns Hopkins University data shows – a world record daily toll, and the first time it has passed 4,000. In 24 hours, 4,085 Americans died, according to the data, while nearly 275,000 cases were confirmed.
08-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,841 compared to 4,951 yesterday; deaths were 96 compared to 111 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,100 compared to 1,106 yesterday. The infection rate was 15.3%
08-Jan-2021 Britain's National Health Service will from next week employ a little-used field hospital specially built at a huge exhibition center in east London in the early days of the pandemic last spring. NHS England Chief Executive Simon Stevens said Thursday that the pressures facing hospitals in London and the southeast of England are so acute that the Nightingale hospital at the ExCel London will be opened next week to inpatients.
08-Jan-2021 Europe is at a tipping point in the course of the pandemic, the World Health Organization has said, warning that the coronavirus is spreading very fast across the continent and the arrival of a new variant has created an "alarming situation".
08-Jan-2021 Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said supply agreements with Pfizer meant that all Israelis over the age of 16 would be able to be vaccinated by the end of March, or perhaps even earlier.
07-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,951 compared to 5,719 yesterday; deaths were 111 compared to 121 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,106 compared to 1,070 yesterday. The infection rate was 15.8%
07-Jan-2021 There were a record 3,865 new deaths from COVID-19 registered in the United States on Wednesday, marking the deadliest day since the start of the pandemic, according to a real-time count kept by Johns Hopkins University. It's the second straight day that the country has logged a record number of fatalities from the disease within a 24-hour reporting period.
07-Jan-2021 Head lice drug ivermectin is being explored as a potential treatment for the coronavirus following a promising new study that showed an 80% reduction in hospitalized COVID-19 patient deaths. Just 8 out of 573 patients who received ivermectin passed away, compared to the 44 individuals out of 510 who died after being given a placebo. An earlier study of the antiparasitic prescription drug, which costs between $17 and $43 for a course of treatment, according to GoodRx, revealed promising results in April — by removing all viral RNA within 48 hours of a single dose.
07-Jan-2021 Public-health agencies and health-care organizations from Iowa to Florida are using some of the hundreds of closed Sears department stores to help with the nationwide effort to administer Covid-19 vaccines to millions of people. Other facilities that have been closed due to the Pandemic are being put to similar use.
07-Jan-2021 Sudan on Wednesday said it signed the "Abraham Accords" formulated by the U.S., paving the way for the African country to normalize ties with Israel. Other countries that have signed the accords include United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman.
Armed supporters of President Trump storm the Capitol building, disrupting Congress.
It was about an hour after Trump addressed thousands on the National Mall, promising to "never concede" that he had lost, when chaos was unleashed.
The DC National Guard has already been deployed and Mayor Muriel Bowser called on neighbouring states Virginia and Maryland to send in their troops for additional backup. New York State has also sent troops to the Capitol.
Rioters smashed windows and clashed with police. Seeking to disrupt the proceedings in Congress, a large group of pro-Trump supporters breached barricades, scaled walls and forced lawmakers to evacuate the premises. The violence continued several hours and halted debate in the House and Senate over Joe Biden's election win.
Today's attack was the first time the US Capitol was broken into since the War of 1812, according to US Capitol Historical Society experts.
06-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 5,719 compared to 4,729 yesterday; deaths were 121 compared to 121 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,070 compared to 1,086 yesterday. The infection rate was 16.7%
06-Jan-2021 The U.S. registered nearly 4,000 deaths in a single day on Tuesday, for another world record. Daily new cases continue at record levels of more than a quarter of a million per day.
06-Jan-2021 Arizona currently has the highest per-capita rate of new Covid-19 infections, with 785 cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days. That rate not only leads the U.S., but is the highest in the world, according to NBC News data. For comparison, the Czech Republic, the country with the highest per-capita rate of infection, has reported 653 cases per 100,000 over the past seven days.
06-Jan-2021 Members of a World Health Organization (WHO) team due to investigate the origins of the coronavirus in Wuhan have been denied entry to China. The probe had been agreed with Beijing after months of negotiations, but the team was denied entry due to a lack of visa clearances, the WHO added.
05-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 4,729 compared to 3,130 yesterday; deaths were 121 compared to 78 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,086 compared to 1,100 yesterday. The infection rate was 15.2%
05-Jan-2021 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday ordered England into a new national lockdown to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases that threatens to overwhelm parts of the health system before a vaccine programme reaches a critical mass. The new measures are likely to remain in place until March.
05-Jan-2021 December was the deadliest month of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States with nearly 78,000 deaths, and health officials warned that even more people will likely die in January despite the rollout of vaccines.
05-Jan-2021 Scientists in South Africa say there is a "reasonable concern" the new variant of Covid-19 sweeping across the country might prove to be more resistant to current vaccines being rolled out in the UK and elsewhere, and warn it makes the need for a global rollout of vaccines "even more critical".
05-Jan-2021 The German government and most of the country's 16 states have reportedly agreed to extend lockdown measures until the end of the month. Restrictions which keep shops, schools and services closed were due to end on January 10th.
05-Jan-2021 The Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services Agency has told ambulance crews not to transport coronavirus patients who are unlikely to survive – in order to conserve oxygen supplies and ICU beds.
05-Jan-2021 A group representing major US airlines on Monday backed a proposal by public health officials to implement a global testing program requiring negative tests before most international air passengers return to the US, according to a letter seen by Reuters.
05-Jan-2021 More than two-thirds of the 15 million coronavirus vaccines shipped within the United States have gone unused, US health officials said on Monday. In New York State, less than 20% of vaccines shipped had been used as of Monday.
04-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,130 compared to 3,034 yesterday; deaths were 78 compared to 60 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,100 compared to 1,119 yesterday. The infection rate was 32.8%
04-Jan-2021 Germany is likely to extend a national lockdown beyond Jan. 10 to curb coronavirus infection rates that are still running high and putting huge strains on hospitals and health workers, politicians said at the weekend.
04-Jan-2021 Boris Johnson says he cannot rule out extending restrictions further in England in the coming weeks and months. His statement came as 57,725 new cases were reported in the UK on Saturday – the latest in a string of daily records.
04-Jan-2021 Saturday's total of 299,087 new cases marks a new single-day high for the U.S., accounting for more than 40% of the worldwide count. The global total is nearing 85 million.
03-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,034 compared to 1,194 yesterday; deaths were 60 compared to 78 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,119 compared to 1,117 yesterday. The infection rate was 30.9%
03-Jan-2021 The new more contagious variant of COVID-19 has been discovered in many countries, including Romania which registered its first such case today.
03-Jan-2021 An Indian government minister announced that the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine had been given the green light on Friday, paving the way for a huge immunisation campaign in the world's second most populous country. A second approved vaccine, known as COVAXIN, has been developed locally by Bharat Biotech and the government-run Indian Council of Medical Research.
03-Jan-2021 The U.S. has hit another devastating milestone: COVID-19 has killed more than 350,000 people in the country, according to a Johns Hopkins University tracker. The grim number comes as a new variant of the coronavirus is spreading across dozens of countries.
03-Jan-2021 A key factor in the spread of Covid-19 is symptomless cases in schools. "…for boys and girls in primary school, around 70% may not be displaying symptoms even though they have picked up the virus," says Professor Michael Hibberd of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
02-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 1,194 compared to 3,938 yesterday; deaths were 78 compared to 74 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,117 compared to 1,111 yesterday. The infection rate was 26.9%
01-Jan-2021 Latest from Romania: The number of new infections was 3,938 compared to 4,322 yesterday; deaths were 74 compared to 171 yesterday; and the number in ICU is 1,111 compared to 1,130 yesterday. The infection rate was 24.7%
01-Jan-2021 Israel has passed the one million mark of people vaccinated against COVID-19. Israel continues to lead the world with 10% of its population having received one of the approved vaccines by year's end.
01-Jan-2021 By nearly every measure, December was the worst month on record since the pandemic took hold in the U.S. New Covid-19 cases stayed above 100,000 a day throughout the month, and more often than not were closer to 200,000. Over 6.1 million new cases were recorded in December—far more than in any other month. Confirmed cases have now surpassed 20 million or roughly one-fourth of the global total.
01-Jan-2021 Only about 2.8 million Americans had received a COVID-19 vaccine going into the last day of December, putting the United States far short of the government's target to vaccinate 20 million people by the end of the year.
01-Jan-2021 Florida is the third U.S. state to announce it has a case of the more contagious coronavirus strain that first emerged in the United Kingdom. A man in his 20s, with no history of travel, tested positive for the mutated coronavirus.