Europe

Canada's COVID-19 cases surpass 1.95 million

Ottawa [Canada], December 25 (ANI/Xinhua): Canada reported 11,304 new COVID-19 cases Friday afternoon, raising the cumulative total to 1,957,058 cases with 30,139 deaths, according to CTV.

2021-12-25T00:22:29.555781+00:00 IST

'China concerned about escalating protests in Gwadar'

Amsterdam [Netherlands], December 24 (ANI): As massive protests rocked Pakistan's Balochistan province, China is concerned about the escalating protests in Gwadar-both the non-violent and the armed versions of it, said a European think tank.

2021-12-24T21:48:30.439023+00:00 IST

UK reports more than 120,000 daily coronavirus cases for first time

London [UK], December 25 (ANI/Xinhua): Britain has reported another 122,186 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, exceeding 120,000 daily cases for the first time since of the start of the pandemic, according to official figures released Friday.

2021-12-24T21:29:06.962713+00:00 IST

Dutch PM Mark Rutte says started booster vaccination campaign too late

Amsterdam [Netherlands], December 24 (ANI/Sputnik): Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Friday the government has committed mistakes in the COVID-19 strategy and should have started the booster vaccination campaign earlier.

2021-12-24T17:24:54.375450+00:00 IST

US, UK, core EU nations call for clarity on postponed Libya polls

Brussels [Belgium], December 24 (ANI/Sputnik): The United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy urged the Libyan electoral body on Friday to set a new date for the long-awaited polls that would finalise power transfer in the country.

2021-12-24T16:26:00.744897+00:00 IST

UK mobile operators fear backlash as govt asks them to send booster vaccine alerts: Reports

Moscow, [Russia] December 24 (ANI/ Sputnik): Major UK mobile operators are concerned about the potential backlash from vaccination opposing clients following the government's request to send a country-wide mobile alert urging the public to get a COVID-19 booster, the Guardian reported on Friday.

2021-12-24T16:10:38.805192+00:00 IST

Record 1.7 million people in UK tested positive for COVID-19 last week

London [UK], December 24 (ANI/Sputnik): Over 1.7 million people across the United Kingdom had COVID-19 from December 13-19, which is the highest number of infections during the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on Friday.

2021-12-24T14:52:25.696771+00:00 IST

UK's Johnson urges people to get COVID-19 vaccine in Christmas message

London [UK], December 24 (ANI/Sputnik): UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday urged people in the United Kingdom to get a COVID-19 vaccine as a Christmas present to their "family and the whole country," amid an unprecedented surge of infections caused by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.

2021-12-24T10:33:53.739579+00:00 IST

COVAX targets 70 pc COVID-19 immunization coverage by mid-2022

Geneva [Switzerland], December 24 (ANI): Amid possible need for variant-specific vaccines, changes to vaccination policies, country preference for some products over others, the programmatic complexity of managing multiple products, and the need for better intelligence on country-level planning and execution, COVAX on Thursday set a target to achieve 70 per cent COVID-19 immunization coverage by mid-2022.

2021-12-24T02:49:34.734542+00:00 IST

Italy tightens anti-virus rules for holiday season as Omicron cases mount

Rome [Italy], December 24 (ANI/Xinhua): Italy on Thursday tightened anti-pandemic rules for the Christmas and New Year holidays amid concerns over rising Omicron cases across the country.

2021-12-23T23:52:43.418113+00:00 IST

US, UK top diplomats discuss response to 'Russian aggression' toward Ukraine

Washington [US], December 24 (ANI/Sputnik): US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and UK Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss on Thursday discussed a potential response to the alleged Russian aggression toward Ukraine, State Department spokesman Ned Price said.

2021-12-23T20:46:28.164125+00:00 IST

UK Home Minister condemns anti-semitic attack in North London

London [UK], December 23 (ANI/Sputnik): UK Home Minister Priti Patel on Thursday condemned a "seriously disturbing" anti-Semitic attack in north London, and said she was in close contact with the Metropolitan Police and a charity protecting the Jewish community in the UK.

2021-12-23T17:08:28.570098+00:00 IST

AstraZeneca booster dose works against Omicron, says Oxford lab study

London [UK], December 23 (ANI): The University of Oxford, in collaboration with AstraZeneca, has announced interim trial data from its Phase III trials that show its candidate coronavirus vaccine, ChAdOx1 nCoV-2019, is effective at preventing COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) and offers a high level of protection.

2021-12-23T14:34:25.763034+00:00 IST

Belgium confirms decision to stop nuclear power reactors by 2025: Reports

Brussels [Belgium], December 23 (ANI/Sputnik): The Belgian ruling coalition confirmed its decision to cease operation of all nuclear reactors in 2025 following negotiations on Thursday, and intends to invest in small modular reactors instead, Belgian media reported.

2021-12-23T13:46:03.293216+00:00 IST

UK Labour Party calls for 'more clarity' over possible further COVID-19 restrictions

London [UK], December 23 (ANI/Sputnik): UK Labour lawmaker and shadow culture minister, Lucy Powell, on Thursday asked the government for "more clarity" over what data it is looking at in order regarding further possible COVID-19 social restrictions to tackle the spread of the Omicron variant.

2021-12-23T12:53:43.958512+00:00 IST

All reports on migrant murders on border should be investigated by Poland: UNHCR

Geneva [Switzerland], December 23 (ANI/Sputnik): It is up to Polish authorities to investigate all claims made by a defected Polish soldier concerning the murders of migrants on the border with Belarus, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Senior Communications Officer Katerina Kitidi told Sputnik.

2021-12-23T08:41:50.554772+00:00 IST

Humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is grave, issues with providing aid remain: Russian diplomat

Moscow [Russia], December 23 (ANI): The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is still quite serious, there are problems with the provision of financial assistance according to the Commissioner for Human Rights at the Russian foreign ministry Grigory Lukyantsev, local media reported.

2021-12-23T08:02:06.430816+00:00 IST

Canada's daily COVID-19 cases continue to soar

Ottawa [Canada], December 23 (ANI/Xinhua): Canada reported 10,804 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday morning, bringing the cumulative total to 1,920,079 cases with 30,097 deaths, according to CTV.

2021-12-23T00:48:54.889002+00:00 IST

Wearing masks on streets to become mandatory in Spain again

Madrid [Spain], December 23 (ANI/ Sputnik): The wearing of masks on the streets will again become mandatory in Spain, the government said.

2021-12-22T22:19:58.186336+00:00 IST

Slovenia imposes new COVID-19 restrictions

Ljubljana [Slovenia], December 23 (ANI/Xinhua): From Thursday, shoppers across Slovenia will be restricted to one customer per 10 square meters, the government decided on Wednesday in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19.

2021-12-22T21:22:56.221536+00:00 IST

UK to offer COVID-19 Pfizer shots to at-risk children aged 5-11

London [UK], December 23 (ANI/Sputnik): The UK Health Security Agency allowed on Wednesday the use of smaller doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccines in children aged 5 to 11 who are at a higher risk from COVID-19.

2021-12-22T18:37:04.702904+00:00 IST