Tag Archives: COVID-19

Greece banned music in restaurants and bars and imposed a nighttime curfew on its popular holiday island of Mykonos on Saturday after a rise in new coronavirus infections there. Known as the party island of the super-rich, Mykonos is one of Greece’s most popular destinations, attracting more than a million …

Thousands marched across France on Saturday to protest against President Emmanuel Macron’s plans to force vaccination of health workers and require a COVID-19 free certificate to enter places such as bars, restaurants, and cinemas. Macron this week announced sweeping measures to fight a rapid surge in coronavirus infections, which protesters …

British health minister Sajid Javid on Saturday said he had tested positive for COVID-19, but added that his symptoms were mild and he was thankful to have had had two doses of vaccine against the disease.

The Australian city of Sydney on Saturday ordered a shutdown of building sites, banned non-essential retail, and threatened fines for employers who make staff come into the office as new COVID-19 cases kept rising three weeks into a citywide lockdown. Authorities in New South Wales state, of which Sydney is …

The Delta variant of COVID-19 is now the dominant strain worldwide, accompanied by a surge of deaths around the United States almost entirely among unvaccinated people, U.S. officials said on Friday. U.S. cases of COVID-19 are up 70% over the previous week and deaths are up 26%, with outbreaks occurring …

Iraq recorded, on Friday 8336 new cases of Covid-19 to take its total to 1,474,865, the health ministry said. It reported 44 deaths to take its coronavirus death toll to 17,751. It also reported 7805 recoveries to take its total to 1,340,383 (90.9%). The COVID-19 intensive care patients count to …

The Eiffel Tower reopened on Friday after an eight-month shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic, its longest closure since World War Two. As a countdown clock at the foot of the tower turned to zero, there were cheers and applause from visitors queuing to get in, a brass band …

Russia’s Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping, and US President Joe Biden, and other world leaders meet virtually on Friday for the Asia-Pacific trade group APEC, seeking collective actions to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impacts. New Zealand, the revolving Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation host, said this week it will …

People in France have taken to the streets to protest against the government’s decision to make Covid-19 vaccination compulsory for health workers and to introduce a health pass to access bars and restaurants. Protests took place across France on Wednesday with heated clashes erupting with police in Paris. A number …

Amnesty International accused Greek police of using the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to impose blanket bans on protests and apply excessive force to crush peaceful demonstrations. Street protests are common in Greece, and several have taken place in recent months on issues ranging from new labor law to Israeli …

The UK’s largest naval flotilla in 40 years has been struck down by a significant coronavirus outbreak. According to The Sun (July 13), almost half the warships in the Royal Navy’s carrier strike group, led by the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier, have been hit by positive Covid-19 cases. The …

A TikTok feature that allows users to add another person’s audio to their videos is being used to promote misleading and harmful content about COVID-19 vaccines, a think tank said in a new report. The London-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue analyzed 124 videos that used speech from four original TikTok …

The United States has seen a nearly 50-percent spike in Covid-19 infections this week compared to last week. The US averaged 19,455 new Covid-19 cases per day over the last seven days, a 47.5-percent increase from the previous week. The latest figures appeared in a new Covid map released by the Johns …

Australian researchers hope low-cost saliva tests will replace the current needle-based tests for diabetes sufferers. Australian scientists say they have developed pain-free blood sugar testing for diabetics, a non-invasive strip that checks glucose levels via saliva. For diabetics, managing their blood sugar levels typically means pricking their fingers multiple times …

US health officials issue new warnings over rare neurological reactions for people getting the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine. United States regulators have added a new warning to Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine about links to a rare and potentially dangerous neurological reaction. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced …

At least two people were dead and 10 missing after heavy rains in a hilly northern Indian state triggered landslides and flash floods that destroyed homes, damaged roads, and swept away cars, a senior government official said on Tuesday. About 50 workers from the National Disaster Response Force and local …

The developers of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine have repeatedly failed to provide data that regulators deem to be standard requirements of the drug approval process, according to five people with knowledge of European efforts to assess the drug, providing new insight into the country’s struggle to win foreign acceptance …

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said on Tuesday that a sufficient number of hospitals combined with a speed-up in the vaccination rollout among the elderly meant the city will be able to hold “safe and secure” Olympics in ten days. But Koike, speaking to Reuters in an interview at the Tokyo …

France needs to push back the retirement age and the government will continue its pension reforms as soon as the COVID-19 situation is under control, French President Emmanuel Macron said in a televised speech on Monday. Pension reform was a central pillar of Macron’s drive to create a more flexible …

A United Nations (UN) report has revealed how the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated world hunger, raising concerns that the organization’s goal of ensuring no one is starving by 2030 is now unattainable. Published on Monday, the annual UN report, entitled ‘The State of Food Security and Nutrition of Food Security …