Month: May 2021

German Health Minister Jens Spahn announced Monday the country was making the single-shot Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine available to all adults, lifting a prioritization that limited the shot only to those 60 and older.Like the AstraZeneca vaccine before it, Germany had limited the use of the Johnson & Johnson shot after several cases of …

Read more “Germany Makes Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine Available to All Adults”

Disquiet is growing within France’s military ranks, with the publication of a second open letter — this time by serving soldiers — warning growing Islamism, delinquency and violence threaten the country’s very survival.This latest open letter by members of France’s armed forces is making headlines — and stirring debate. Like one last month signed by …

Read more “Second Open Letter by French Soldiers Warns of Civil Insurrection”

Boris Johnson’s resounding victory in local and regional elections in Britain last week is dismaying not just for the country’s storied Labour Party, but also for mainstream leftist parties on the continent of Europe, most of which are also struggling for electoral relevancy.  From Italy to Germany, France to the countries of Central Europe, the …

Read more “Europe’s Social Democratic Parties Struggle for Electoral Relevancy “

A diplomatic dispute between Morocco and Spain over Madrid’s decision to host a leader of the Western Saharan independence movement has soured what had been improving relations across the Mediterranean Sea.   Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front, which wants for independence of the Sahrawi people in Western Sahara, is being treated at a hospital …

Read more “Fresh Dispute Erupts Between Spain and Morocco Over Western Sahara Leader”

Helmut Jahn, a prominent German architect who designed an Illinois state government building and worked on the design of the FBI headquarters in Washington, was killed in a bicycle accident outside Chicago. Jahn, 81, was struck Saturday afternoon while riding north on a village street in Campton Hills, about 90 kilometers (55 miles) west of Chicago. Jahn …

Read more “Famous German Architect Killed in Illinois Bike Accident”

One of Britain’s most wanted fugitives, a 35-year-old suspected of involvement in a plot to traffic huge quantities of cocaine, has been arrested in Dubai, authorities said Sunday. Michael Paul Moogan, from Liverpool, had been on the run for eight years since a raid on a Rotterdam cafe that is suspected of being a front for meetings between drug traffickers …

Read more “British Fugitive Arrested in Dubai on Drug-trafficking Charges”

More than 1,200 migrants in several decrepit, overcrowded fishing boats on Sunday reached a tiny Italian island in a span of 12 hours, as human traffickers exploited calm seas and warm weather to launch multiple vessels, the mayor said. The first of the migrants arrived at 5 a.m., Lampedusa Mayor Salvatore Martello told Sky TG24 TV …

Read more “More Than 1,200 Migrants Reach Italian Island in Boats in 12 Hours”

President Emmanuel Macron’s plans for bringing France out of the pandemic aren’t just about resuscitating long-closed restaurants, boutiques and museums. They are also about preparing his possible campaign for a second term.A year before the next presidential election, Macron is focusing on saving jobs and reviving the pandemic-battered French economy as his country inches out …

Read more “Eyeing Reelection Bid, Macron Looks to Repair French Economy”

The leader of the Scottish National Party, Nicola Sturgeon, has vowed to start the push for a second referendum on Scottish independence as her party made major gains in elections this weekend for Scotland’s devolved Parliament, but fell short by one seat of securing an overall majority. Sturgeon is wasting no time in laying down the …

Read more “Buoyed by Big Election Win, Scottish Nationalists Demand Independence Vote “

  Russia showed off its military might with parades across the country on Sunday to commemorate the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. President Vladimir Putin reviewed the main Victory Day parade on Moscow’s Red Square, featuring some 12,000 troops, nearly 200 pieces of military hardware, and aircraft and helicopter flyovers. Putin watched the display …

Read more “Russia Rolls out Military Might for Victory Day Amid Tensions with West “

President Emmanuel Macron’s plans for bringing France out of the pandemic aren’t just about resuscitating long-closed restaurants, boutiques and museums. They are also about preparing his possible campaign for a second term.A year before the next presidential election, Macron is focusing on saving jobs and reviving the pandemic-battered French economy as his country inches out …

Read more “Eyeing Reelection Bid, Macron Looks to Repair French Eeconomy”

An Italian judge murdered by the mafia in Sicily takes a step towards sainthood Sunday, almost three decades after being declared a martyr by pope John Paul II.The beatification of Rosario Livatino will take place in the cathedral in Agrigento, the Sicilian town near where he was gunned down aged 38 on September 21, 1990.In …

Read more “Sicilian Judge Killed by Mafia Takes Step to Sainthood”

Italian archaeologists have uncovered the fossilized remains of nine Neanderthals in a cave near Rome, shedding new light on how the Italian peninsula was populated and under what environmental conditions.The Italian Culture Ministry announced the discovery Saturday, saying it had confirmed that the Guattari Cave in San Felice Circeo was “one of the most significant …

Read more “Archaeologists Discover Remains of 9 Neanderthals Near Rome”

The European Union said Saturday that it had posted bail for Georgia’s jailed opposition leader, Nika Melia, paving the way for his release and ending a protracted political crisis in the Caucasus country.Melia, the chairman of Georgia’s main opposition force, the United National Movement (UNM), was arrested in February in a violent police raid on …

Read more “EU Posts Bail to Free Jailed Georgia Opposition Leader”

Pro-independence parties won a majority in Scotland’s parliament on Saturday, paving the way to a high-stakes political, legal and constitutional battle with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson over the future of the United Kingdom.Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the result meant she would push ahead with plans for a second independence referendum once the …

Read more “Scottish Nationalists Vow Independence Vote After Election Win”

Seven people died Saturday in two avalanches in the French Alps, according to authorities who had warned Friday of the instability of the snowpack because of warmer temperatures.The first fatal slide was triggered late in the morning in the town of Valloire in the sector of the Col du Galibier at 2,642 meters above sea …

Read more “Two Avalanches in French Alps Kill Seven”

While thousands flock daily to health clinics and ad-hoc vaccination points across Spain, health workers also fan out across the country to take shots to some of those who are the most vulnerable to the coronavirus.More than 1 million Spaniards are considered by social services to be in need of help to feed and care …

Read more “Spain Takes Vaccines to Rural Homebound”

The European Union cemented its support for Pfizer-BioNTech and its novel COVID-19 vaccine technology Saturday by agreeing to a massive contract extension for a potential 1.8 billion doses through 2023.EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted that her office “has just approved a contract for a guaranteed 900 million doses” with the same amount …

Read more “EU Agrees Potential 1.8 Billion-Dose Purchase of Pfizer Vaccine”

The fight to make the French language kinder to women took steps forward, and back, this week.   Warning that the well-being of France and its future are at stake, the government banned the use in schools of a method increasingly used by some French speakers to make the language more inclusive by feminizing some …

Read more “In the French Language, Steps Forward and Back for Women”

The European Commission called on the United States and other major COVID-19 vaccine producers Friday to export what they make, as the European Union does, rather than talk about waiving intellectual property (IP) rights to the shots.Commission head Ursula von der Leyen told a news conference on the sidelines of a summit of EU leaders …

Read more “EU Calls on US, Others to Export Their COVID-19 Vaccines “

The top diplomats from the United States, China and Russia urged strengthened global cooperation Friday, recognizing the need to tackle growing global challenges and an unprecedented pandemic but sparring over their different worldviews and who’s to blame for threats to multilateralism.The high-level U.N. Security Council meeting marked the first joint appearance, albeit virtually, by U.S. …

Read more “US, Chinese, Russian Diplomats Urge Cooperation but Haggle Nonetheless”

Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, and her ruling Scottish National Party (SNP) made early gains Friday as the first returns from the nation’s parliamentary election were reported. While full results are not expected until Saturday, and Sturgeon cautioned the results remained too close to call, at last count the SNP had won at least 32 seats …

Read more “Early Returns in Scotland Election Bode Well for Sturgeon’s Ruling Party”

The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved a COVID-19 vaccine developed in China for emergency use worldwide.The vaccine, from China’s state-owned drugmaker Sinopharm, is the first vaccine manufactured by a non-Western country to be endorsed by WHO.Friday’s move was also the first time the global public health group granted emergency approval to a Chinese vaccine …

Read more “WHO Approves Chinese COVID Vaccine for Emergency Use Worldwide”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s ruling Conservatives appeared on course Friday to pull off a historic election victory against the country’s main opposition Labour Party, making deep inroads into Labour’s traditional heartlands in northern England after 48 million Britons voted Thursday for devolved, regional and town governments.      Early results painted a gloomy electoral …

Read more “UK’s Boris Johnson Celebrates Local Election Wins Thanks to ‘Vaccine Bounce’”