Author: News Desk

 India will lead demands for an intellectual property rights waiver for COVID-19 vaccines and supplies at a World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting next week, two government officials said. A year after India and South Africa introduced a proposal to temporarily waive intellectual property rights on COVID-19 vaccines and therapies at the WTO, negotiations are deadlocked in the face of opposition from some developed countries. Shyamal Misra, a senior official at the Ministry of Commerce, said India would not just be speaking for itself at the WTO ministerial conference in Geneva starting on Nov. 30, but for other developing countries with…

India will resume scheduled international flights from December 15, the Civil Aviation Ministry said Friday evening according to a report by news agency PTI. “The matter of resumption of scheduled commercial international passenger services, to and from India, has been examined in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Health, and it has been decided… may be resumed from December 15,” PTI quoted an order from the Aviation Ministry. Scheduled international flights – except repatriation services and flights carrying essential goods – were suspended in March last year, as the country…

LONDON :  The bars are shut in Vienna, and the Christmas market is empty in Munich, as several European nations tighten up or even lock down to combat a spike in coronavirus infections. Meanwhile in London, couples sip mulled wine at a seasonal market near the River Thames, full-capacity audiences fill the seats at the nearby National Theatre, and friends huddle over pints in pubs throughout the city. Not for the first time in the pandemic, Britain is out of step with many of its neighbors. But this time, it’s happy to be different. The U.K. has endured three nationwide lockdowns and recorded…

Geneva :  Advisers to the World Health Organization are holding a special session Friday to flesh out information about a worrying new variant of the coronavirus that has emerged in South Africa, though a top expert says its impact on COVID-19 vaccines may not be known for weeks. The technical advisory group on the evolution of COVID-19 was meeting virtually to discuss the so-called B.1.1.529 variant that has caused stock markets to swoon and led the European Union to recommend a pause in flights to southern Africa. The group could decide if it’s a “variant of concern” — the most…

Johannesburg :  A new coronavirus variant has been detected in South Africa that scientists say is a concern because of its high number of mutations and rapid spread among young people in Gauteng, the country’s most populous province, Health Minister Joe Phaahla announced Thursday. The coronavirus evolves as it spreads and many new variants, including those with worrying mutations, often just die out. Scientists monitor for possible changes that could be more transmissible or deadly, but sorting out whether new variants will have a public health impact can take time. South Africa has seen a dramatic rise in new infections,…

CANBERRA :  Violence receded Friday in the capital of the Solomon Islands, but the government showed no signs of addressing the underlying grievances that sparked two days of riots, including concerns about the country’s increasing links with China. Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare sought to deflect attention from domestic issues by blaming outside interference for stirring up the protesters, with a thinly veiled reference to Taiwan and the United States. External pressures were a “very big  influence. I don’t want to name names. We’ll leave it there,” Sogavare said. Honiara’s Chinatown and its downtown precinct were focuses of rioters,…

BRUSSELS :  European Union nations were moving to stop air travel from southern Africa on Friday, seeking to counter the spread of a new COVID-19 variant as the 27-nation bloc battles a massive spike in cases. “The last thing we need is to bring in a new variant that will cause even more problems,” said German Health Minister Jens Spahn. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement that she “proposes, in close coordination with the member states, to activate the emergency brake to stop air travel from the southern African region.” Scientists say the new coronavirus…

Rome : Sharbat Gula, the famed green-eyed “Afghan girl” featured on a cover of National Geographic magazine in 1985, has been evacuated to Italy, the government said on Thursday. “Afghan citizen Sharbat Gula has arrived in Rome,” the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the Italian equivalent of the prime minister’s office, said in a statement. Gula was helped as part of Italy’s wider evacuation programme in place for Afghan citizens and the government’s plan for their reception and integration. Gula came to public attention around the world when her photograph was published on the cover of National Geographic in…

London : More than 259.61 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 5,436,733have died. Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.

Uber will halt its ride-hailing service in most of Belgium tomorrow following a court ruling Wednesday that extends a 2015 order banning its p2p UberPop service to also cover professional drivers providing its ride-hailing service. Uber told us that it is studying the detail of the ruling to decide whether to appeal the decision with the country’s Supreme Court. The move also follows a temporary suspension of Uber’s service in Brussels in September — an action the tech giant called “exceptional and unprecedented”, saying it was only taking the step to protest the lack of reform of rules which prohibit drivers from…