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United States taking hard look at variant of coronavirus: Anthony Fauci
On Sunday, Fauci echoed a concern aired by President-elect Joe Biden that as "we get into the next few weeks, it might actually get worse". Everyone, Fauci said, has to be "honest and humble, nobody really knows for sure, but I think 70 to 85% for herd immunity for Covid-19 is a reasonable estimate, and in fact, most of my epidemiology colleagues agree with me". [Full Article...]
First COVID-19 vaccinations take place in Rome and Prague
Nearly 10 months after the first Italian patient tested positive for the new coronavirus, Italy on Sunday vaccinated the first residents against COVID-19. According to official records, there have been 1.85 million confirmed Covid-19 infections and close to 50,000-related deaths overall in the country. [Full Article...]
Shanghai Police Say Suspect Detained In Games Tycoon's Death
Lin Qi was the founder, chairman and top shareholder of Youzu Interactive Co. Lin Qi, chairman and CEO of the Chinese entertainment company Yoozoo Group and a producer on Netflix's upcoming series The Three-Body Problem, has died after allegedly being poisoned on December 16. [Full Article...]
Saudi women's rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul given five-year prison sentence
Hathloul was detained by the local authorities in May 2018 with several other women activists while she was campaigning for women's rights. The report said the verdict was issued in the presence of the prosecutor, the defendant, a representative from the government's Human Rights Commission and a handful of select local media representatives. [Full Article...]
CHINA Wuhan blogger Zhang Zhan sentenced to four years in prison
Zhang has been held at a detention center in Shanghai's Pudong district since mid-May. Reuters , citing her lawyer, reported that there will likely be an appeal and said his client believes she is "being persecuted for exercising her freedom of speech". [Full Article...]
Japan to halt foreign entries after new virus variant cases found
The ban will take effect from December 28 and will run through January, the government said in an emailed statement. The cases of the new variant of the virus have been reported by a number of countries, including Denmark, Singapore and Spain. [Full Article...]
Korea Extends UK Flight Ban by a Week to January 7
South Korea's government has faced mounting domestic criticism over its vaccine procurement and rollout plans. The government on Sunday said it will spend another week before determining whether to enforce its toughest physical distancing rules in the greater Seoul area that officials worry would further hurt the economy. [Full Article...]
Snow and ice follow Christmas storms
North-western France was also hit by Storm Bella . Around 800 households are still without power, with west Dublin city and west county Dublin worst affected by the outages. A forecaster said: "Heavy showers will merge into a more organised band, extending from the northwest during the evening". These could leave a covering on hills as far South as the Peak District by dusk in a raw South Wes... [Full Article...]