(2021-01-04). Venezuela Denounces Obstacles To Access COVID-19 Vaccines. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday denounced the blocking of resources by international banks and western nations against the country to prevent the acquisition of COVID-19 vaccines, noting the moves are in line with the U.S. unilateral sanctions. | RELATED: | The Venezuelan assets to buy COVID-19 vaccines "have been stolen and frozen by the U.K, Portugal, Spain, and the U.S.," Maduro pointed out, recalling that his administration has ma…
(2021-01-04). Paygo Exemptions Will Help Pave Way for Green New Deal and Medicare for All. zcomm.org "Paygo's the biggest scam of the decade, designed to legitimize the fear-mongering over artificial deficits. This is a big win by progressives."
(2021-01-04). "No Victory for Press Freedom" — Assange Wins Case but Judge Sets Worrying Precedent. mintpressnews.com 
Julian Assange will not be extradited to the United States as many feared, but his fate still hangs in the balance as it was the integrity of his mental health, not the right to a free press, that saved him.
(2021-01-04). 'Batch testing' is reportedly limiting how fast we can roll the coronavirus vaccine out. thecanary.co 
Boris Johnson has suggested the limiting factor in expanding the UK's coronavirus vaccine rollout is waiting for batches of the jab to be tested.Batch testing: Ministers have said the NHS has the capacity to deliver two million doses a week of the Oxford vaccine once it receives supplies from the manufacturers. The prime minister claims the issue is not supply or staff but waiting for batch approval.He said: We have the capacity, the issue is to do with supply of the vaccine. It's not so much a manufacturing issue although that's part of it. Each batch needs to be properly approved and quality controlled.(P…
(2021-01-04). Argentina legalises abortion in historic victory for reproductive rights. thecanary.co 
Argentina has The new law will allow abortions until the 14th week of pregnancy, where they were previously only allowed if the mother's health was at risk or if she had been raped. | The Argentine Senate voted in favour of the bill at the end of December, after the lower house did the
(2021-01-04). Media Praise of Israel's COVID Vaccination Drive a Form of "Medical Apartheid" mintpressnews.com 
Completely missing from media accounts of the Israeli vaccine drive was mention of the millions of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation, none of whom have received the vaccine.
(2021-01-04). UK judge blocks WikiLeaks founder Assange's extradition to US. laprensalatina.com London, Jan 4 (efe-epa).- A British court on Monday rejected a request by the United States to extradite the founder of whistleblowing website WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, on the grounds that it would be detrimental to his mental health and that he would be a suicide risk. Assange, an Australian citizen, is accused by the US …
(2021-01-04). Worldwide Activists Back UK Verdict Against Assange's Extradition. telesurenglish.net Human rights defenders, social activists, and political figures worldwide Monday reacted with joy to the United Kingdom Criminal Court's refusal to extradite Australian journalist Julian Assange to the U.S. | RELATED: | Judge Vanessa Baraitser, who denied the extradition on health grounds and high risk of Assange committing suicide, "accepted all the U.S. persecution motives," Former Consul of Ecuador in the U.K. Fidel Narvaez condemne…
(2021-01-04). Open Arms Lands Eritrean Migrants in Sicily. telesurenglish.net The Italian authorities on Monday allowed the Spanish humanitarian ship Open Arms to dock in Porto Empedocle in Sicily to disembark the 265 sub-Saharan migrants who were rescued in the Mediterranean Sea a few days ago. | RELATED: | Among those saved are 63 minors, six babies under three years of age, and 14 women, one of whom is in the ninth month of pregnancy. | Doctors from the Office of Maritime Health (USMA…
(2021-01-04). COVID-19: The Emergence of the Pandemic Industrial Complex. globalresearch.ca : | If official numbers are to be believed, the United States is one of the worst hit countries in terms of COVID-19 infections and deaths. According to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), at the time of writing, …
(2021-01-04). Three-quarters of infected Memphis workers remained on the job after testing positive for coronavirus. wsws.org While the study by county health officials does not attempt to explain why so many people continued to work, the fact is that major corporations have continued to operate at close to full capacity during the height of the pandemic, resorting to lies and threats to keep workers on the job under unsafe conditions.
(2021-01-04). COVID-19: Global vaccination stymied by nationalism and profit gouging. wsws.org The race to procure vaccines against a fast-spreading virus that travels unimpeded by border controls has set in motion a ferocious national competition that threatens to prolong and intensify the pandemic.
(2021-01-04). Mexico: 32,824 Health Workers Have Been Vaccinated So Far. telesurenglish.net Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) Sunday announced that 53,625 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been received in the country, 32,824 of which have been applied to health personnel. | RELATED: | He added that 50,000 more doses will arrive on Tuesday to continue the vaccination in the healthcare sector , which has at least 750,000 workers. | The elderly population will be vaccinated with the…
(2021-01-04). Japan considers declaring state of emergency in Tokyo area. laprensalatina.com Tokyo, Jan 4 (efe-epa).- Japan Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Monday that the government was considering declaring another state of emergency in Tokyo and the surrounding areas due to the continued rise of Covid-19 cases that have piled up the pressure on the country's healthcare system. The emergency declaration, if announced, would affect the capital …
(2021-01-04). Hospitals overwhelmed and bodies loaded into semi-trailers as California reaches breaking point with COVID-19. wsws.org The flood of coronavirus cases has exposed the underfunded and unprepared health care system in the richest state in the US.
(2021-01-04). Over 2,900 US health care workers have died from COVID-19. wsws.org A new report by the Guardian and Kaiser Health News published last week estimates that over 2,900 health care workers have died in the United States due to COVID-19.
(2021-01-04). Arizona educators planning sick-out in several school districts. fightbacknews.org Tucson, AZ – As COVID-19 rates and deaths continue to rise in Arizona, as many as 750 educators in the districts of Chandler, Dysart, Peoria and Deer Valley are planning a sick-out to resist the order to return to in-person instruction. | The event is called "Blackout for the Benchmarks" using the hashtag #RIPMetrics in order to highlight the neglect of state and county COVID-19 health benchmarks and safety metrics demonstrated by these school districts. State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Hoffman recommended at least two weeks of virtual learning as students return from winter break. Reactionary Governor Doug…
(2021-01-04). UK teaching unions call for no work in "unsafe schools" as opposition among educators mounts. wsws.org Schools have been a major vector for the spread of COVID-19, worsened by a new and more contagious variant of the disease.
(2021-01-04). COVID-19 claims 55,650 lives across Iran. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jan. 04 (MNA) — The coronavirus has infected 6,073 people and claimed 110 lives in Iran in the past 24 hours, according to the Iranian Health Ministry.
(2021-01-04). Pfizer VP Calls For Vaccine Withdrawal, Flu Shots Down, Nobel Prize Winner Warns. indybay.org Why have flu shots dropped 98%? | Why does a retired Pfizer VP petition EU health agency to withdraw vaccine? Why are not just pregnant women but all women who want ever to conceive warned against vaccine? Nobel Prize winner and creator of PCR test says it should not be used in covid 19 tests. Why?>
(2021-01-04). Egypt Licenses Sinopharm COVID-19 Vaccine for Emergency Use. telesurenglish.net Egypt's Health Minister Hala Zayed said that the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Chinese drugmaker Sinopharm has been officially licensed for emergency use in Egypt. | RELATED: | "The Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) will send us the official license early in the morning, which it has already issued today," he announced. | Egypt received the first batch of Sinopharm vaccines on Dec. 10. The minister said that the batch…
(2021-01-04). Political prisoner Facundo Molares wins freedom! fightbacknews.org Political prisoner Facundo Molares, an Argentinian photojournalist who was incarcerated by the Bolivian Añez regime, is now safely home in his native Argentina. | Molares was arrested during a violent incident between armed forces backing the coup d'etat and protests for democracy in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia on November 19, 2019, two days after the unelected Añez government took over. Molares was documenting the confrontation for the magazine Centenario, but during this incident he had a health crisis and was rushed to the hospital. | The Añez coup regime arrested Facundo in his hospital bed. It is widely…
(2021-01-04). Midnight rush: 6 ways Trump trashed the environment during the holidays. nationofchange.org Trump's team continued its unprecedented onslaught on environmental regulations, with nearly a dozen new rollbacks or threats to public health, wildlife, clean air, public lands and the climate.
(2021-01-04). West refusing to unfreeze Caracas funds for vaccine purchase. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jan. 04 (MNA) — Venezuelan President says the EU nations and the United States have refused Venezuela's request to unfreeze its assets so that the sanctions-hit country could purchase a coronavirus vaccine.
(2021-01-04). Iran, Russia preparing meeting on coronavirus vaccines: envoy. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jan. 04 (MNA) — Iran's Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali said that Iran and Russia are preparing a personal meeting on cooperation in producing vaccines against the coronavirus.
(2021-01-04). Brazil to Import 2 Million Doses of AstraZeneca Vaccine. telesurenglish.net Brazil's National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) Sunday authorized the "exceptional import" of 2 million doses of the vaccine produced by Oxford University and the United Kingdom-based laboratory AstraZeneca. | RELATED: | The doses that will arrive in the country in the next days will not be supplied to the entire population. The immunizer will be used in emergencies, such as patients at high risk of dying due to the disease. | "More doses will…
(2021-01-04). Shelter offers hope for homeless, at-risk members of Mexico's LGBT community. laprensalatina.com By Monica Rubalcava Mexico City, Jan 4 (efe-epa).- Before discovering Casa Frida, Alex Navarro thought of shelters as uniformly hostile places. But three months after his arrival at that Mexico City-based refuge for at-risk members of the LGBTIQ+ community, he is deeply grateful to that civil association that sprung up during the health emergency and …
(2021-01-04). Coronavirus vaccines roll out across EU, although too slowly for some. laprensalatina.com Madrid Desk, Jan 4 (efe-epa).- Coronavirus vaccines were being rolled out across the European Union, although some countries are facing criticism that the distribution and administration of the jabs is taking too long. FRANCE French President, Emmanuel Macron, will lead a special government meeting on Monday to assess delays in the coronavirus vaccination campaign and …
(2021-01-04). To Honor the Legacy of John Lewis, Vote for Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. commondreams.org It's game on! Georgia voters hold the key to control of the Senate—which means they hold the key to our public health and our health care. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-01-03). Ecuador's Leftists Launch Presidential Campaign. telesurenglish.net Ecuador's leftist Centro Democrático has launched its presidential campaign at an event in Quito on Saturday, with an official presentation of candidate Andres Arauz expected in the coming days. | RELATED: | The official event scheduled for Saturday was dialed back in response to recent medical reports on the tests performed on presidential candidate Arauz, who despite substantial improvements in health, may still have Covid-19, havin…
(2021-01-03). Very reassuring: India's drug regulator declares Covid jabs '110% safe' in overzealous attempt to dispel impotency rumors. rt.com 
India is fighting to dispel rumors that two newly-approved coronavirus vaccines can cause erectile dysfunction, but the country's drug regulator may have overdone it by insisting that the jabs are more than 100-percent safe. | On Sunday, India officially gave the green light to Covishield, a drug developed by the Pune-based Serum Institute based on the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine, as well as Covaxin, created by Indian pharmaceutical Bharat Biotech. The AstraZeneca jab received emergency approval despite Covishield showing at least 62-percent efficacy, a value considerably lower than competing drugs. There have…
(2021-01-03). Israel's millionth vaccinee injected in front of Netanyahu turns out to be ex-con who served 14 years for manslaughter. rt.com 
In a PR stunt gone wrong, the millionth recipient of the Covid-19 vaccine in Israel, who got his jab in front of PM Benjamin Netanyahu, was revealed to be a former criminal who did time for stabbing a man to death.
(2021-01-03). Humans of the GREAT RESET: What the future MIGHT look like in 2021 — if the controlling elites have their way. rt.com 
With vaccine rollouts underway, humanity looks set to win the fight against the coronavirus. But some elites planning a post-coronavirus 'Great Reset' don't want to go back to normal. Here's what they have planned instead. | As lockdowns and mask mandates became a part of daily life over the last year, politicians the world over asked their citizenry to accept "The New Normal." The phrase became ubiquitous, but as vaccines inched closer to deployment, that phrase was replaced with a new one, "The Great Reset," used to describe the monumental changes to human society needed in a post-coronavirus world. | Unveil…
(2021-01-03). Moscow finance staff now eligible for Russian Sputnik V Covid-19 jab — in line behind doctors, teachers & industrial workers. rt.com 
More Russians will become eligible for the country's mass immunization program against Covid-19 from Monday, with plans already made in the capital to hand out jabs to people working in a range of different industries. | The Mayor of Moscow, Sergey Sobyanin, announced on Sunday on his personal website that registration would open for employees of banking and finance businesses, as well as for government workers. They will be able to sign up to receive their first dose of the Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine at one of 70 centers set up across the city. | This weekend, Russia announced that it had already rolled o…
(2021-01-03). Upcoming Ruling In Assange Trial Threatens More Than Freedom Of The Press. popularresistance.org Although important legal principles are at stake in the extradition trial of Julian Assange, for which a ruling will be handed down on January 4, it should not be forgotten that there are important human issues at stake as well. | One such issue is Assange's health, which has progressively worsened under what seems to be cruel and even sadistic maltreatment by the British government, including the refusal of appropriate medical care and confining him in his cell for 23 hours a day, seven days a week. | The other is that, if the Judge's ruling is adverse, Julian's two children may never see their father again. | M…
(2021-01-03). Africa in Review 2020: The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Imperatives of the 21st Century. globalresearch.ca Although the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa does not in any way rival the existing public health situation in Western Europe and the United States, the presence of a new variant in South Africa and other regions of …
(2021-01-03). India approves emergency use of AstraZeneca, Bharat Biotech vaccines. laprensalatina.com New Delhi, Jan 3 (efe-epa).- India on Sunday approved two coronavirus vaccines for emergency use, one developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, and the other by local pharma Bharat Biotech, moving a step closer to one of the world's largest inoculation campaigns against the Covid-19 pandemic. The head of India's drugs regulator, Venugopal G. Somani, …
(2021-01-03). Iran registers 5,960 new COVID-19 cases, 102 deaths. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jan. 03( MNA) — Iran's Health Ministry registered 5,960 new coronavirus cases and 102 fatalities on Sunday, the ministry's spokeswoman said.
(2021-01-03). Govt. hopeful to procure COVID-19 vaccine in coming weeks. en.mehrnews.com Tehran, Jan. 03 (MNA) — President Hassan Rouhani says his administration is making every effort to provide the COVID-19 vaccine, expressing hope that the goal will be realized in the few coming weeks.
(2021-01-03). Thailand detects 315 new Covid-19 cases, prepares tougher restrictions. laprensalatina.com Bangkok, Jan 3 (efe-epa).- Thailand confirmed 315 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, most of them local infections as the country reels under the second wave of the coronavirus that began in mid-December and has forced the health authorities to prepare for harsher restrictions. The new cases, which include 21 imported, has increased the overall tally …
(2021-01-03). Kenyan clinical officers end strike after government agrees to most of their demands. peoplesdispatch.org The Kenya Union of Clinical Officers and the government signed a 17-point return to work agreement which addresses major issues such as comprehensive health insurance and hospitalization for health workers who have contracted the infection…
(2021-01-03). Severe air pollution hits Tehran. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jan. 03 (MNA) — Air Quality Index (AQI) value in Tehran has reached 163 on Sunday which is considered unhealthy for the sensitive groups.
(2021-01-03). Measures to continue in Germany, Belgium; France steps up vaccine rollout. laprensalatina.com Madrid Desk, Jan 3 (efe-epa).- The German health minister has called for current lockdown measures in the country to be extended until the end of the month amid sustained high infection rates, while the Belgian prime minister said he would only consider easing current restrictions before March if the infection rate drops by at least …
(2021-01-03). America Was Always Going to Bungle the Vaccine Rollout. commondreams.org "It isn't hard to think up a simple set of rules that would ensure shots are going into arms as quickly as possible." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-01-03). A Year Ago the U.S. Assassinated a National Leader. commondreams.org The Soleimani assassination and its anniversary ought to provide occasion for Americans to think carefully about the nature of what each side in this badly plagued relationship has done to the other. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-01-02). Paygo Exemptions in House Rules Will Help Pave Way for Green New Deal and Medicare for All, Progressives Say. commondreams.org "Paygo's the biggest scam of the decade, designed to legitimize the fear-mongering over artificial deficits. This is a big win by progressives." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2021-01-02). Relations between Russia & China at 'historic high' after 'once-in-century epidemic,' says Chinese foreign minister. rt.com 
The relationship between Beijing and Moscow has remained close throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, and the two countries have emerged from the crisis as stronger allies, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday. | In recent times, China and Russia have pulled away from the West and grown closer to each other with ever-strengthening economic ties. The new paradigm marks a profound geopolitical shift, given that, until the events of 2014 in Ukraine, Moscow had spent around 25 years pursuing a path to Western integration, which included membership of the G8. | In the Soviet-era, the USSR and Beijing viewed…
(2021-01-02). India approves AstraZeneca vaccine as company still working on jab's efficacy of at least 62% after disappointing trial results. rt.com 
India has approved AstraZeneca's Covid-19 jab for emergency use, despite trials showing its efficacy to be 62 percent with two full shots. AstraZeneca claims to have discovered a new "winning formula," but hasn't revealed it yet. | India's information minister, Prakash Javadekar, announced on Saturday that the coronavirus vaccine, designed by the British-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca in collaboration with the University of Oxford, had been approved by regulators a day earlier for emergency use. Formal approval by the Drugs Controller General of India is expected in the coming days. | The news came as India sur…
(2021-01-02). [Comment] Offline: The age of universal history. thelancet.com At the beginning of 2021, with communities exhausted and shattered, what do we have to look forward to? One scientist, deeply engaged in modelling the pandemic, believes that a vaccine, together with mounting levels of natural immunity, will bring the worst to an end by the summer. I am less confident than him. But I do see an opportunity that is there to be seized. 60 years ago, one of France's leading public intellectuals, Raymond Aron, wrote that "I believe the dawn of universal history is on the point of breaking".
(2021-01-02). [Correspondence] Germany's new global health strategy: leaving migrants behind. thelancet.com After 3 years of consultation involving various ministries, academia, youth, civil society, private sector organisations, and an international advisory board, the German Federal Government issued its new global health strategy on Oct 7, 2020.1 In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, growing nationalism, and declining support for WHO by some of its member states, Germany emphasises multilateralism and a global health in all policies approach. This statement is strong and timely, underpinned by unequivocal commitments to health as a human right and universal health coverage free of all forms of discrimination.
