Feb 07 AstraZeneca vaccine being tweaked to fight S. Africa variant By Associated Press Health officials in Britain are trying to contain the spread of the variant first identified in South Africa amid concerns that it is more contagious or resistant to existing vaccines. More than 100 cases of the South African variant have… Continue reading
Feb 07 Internet access restored as Myanmar coup protests grow By Associated Press Separate protests that began in various parts of Yangon converged at Sule Pagoda, situated in the center of a roundabout in the city’s downtown area. Protesters chanted “Long live Mother Suu” and “Down with military dictatorship.” Protesters in other parts… Continue reading
Feb 07 140 are missing after glacier breaks in India's Himalayas By Rishabh Jain, Associated Press The flood was caused when a portion of Nanda Devi glacier broke off in the Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand on Sunday morning. A video shared by officials and taken from the side of steep hillside shows… Continue reading
Feb 06 China gives approval for broader use of Sinovac vaccine By Huizhong Wu, Associated Press Regulators gave conditional approval for Sinovac Biotech Ltd’s shot, CoronaVac, on Friday, clearing the way for general use, The National Medical Products Administration announced in a statement Saturday. Continue reading
Feb 06 Myanmar junta blocks internet access as coup protests expand By Associated Press Myanmar’s new military authorities appeared to have cut most access to the Internet on Saturday as they faced a rising tide of protest over their coup that toppled Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected civilian government. Continue reading
Feb 06 Unwilling to wait, poorer countries seek their own vaccines By Maria Cheng, Aniruddha Ghosal, Associated Press Unlike past disease outbreaks, where less wealthy countries have generally waited for vaccines to be delivered by the U.N. and other organizations, many are now taking matters into their own hands. Experts are increasingly concerned that these go-it-alone efforts could… Continue reading
Feb 05 AP Report: Biden to revoke terrorist designation for Yemen's Houthis By Associated Press President Donald Trump's administration had branded the Iranian-backed Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization, a move that limited the provision of aid to the beleaguered Yemeni people, who have suffered under a yearslong civil war and famine. Continue reading
Feb 05 Watch 5:41 News Wrap: Pentagon to mobilize more than 1,100 troops to expedite vaccinations By PBS NewsHour In our news wrap Friday, the Pentagon will deploy more than 1,100 active duty troops to help with coronavirus vaccinations, the U.S. trade deficit surged to a 12-year-high in 2020 due to the pandemic, hundreds of people in Myanmar protested… Continue watching
Feb 05 Watch 6:52 Months after massive explosion, a worsening pandemic complicates Beirut's recovery By Leila Molana-Allen It's been six months since a massive fertilizer explosion at the Port of Beirut tore through the city, leaving hundreds dead and catastrophic destruction. Lebanon was already mired in a deep economic crisis before the blast, and is now experiencing… Continue watching
Feb 05 ICC clears way for war crimes probe of Israeli actions By Josef Federman, Associated Press The ICC's chief prosecutor said in 2019 that there was a "reasonable basis" to open a war crimes probe into Israeli military actions in the Gaza Strip and Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank. But she asked the court… Continue reading