Cameroon receives 200,000 doses of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine

Cameroon took delivery on Sunday of 200,000 doses of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines, the first vaccines to arrive in the country, which will enable it inoculate frontline workers as it battles rising cases of coronavirus, the health ministry said.

Top U.S. diplomat criticizes China, says 'need to get to the bottom' of COVID-19 origin

China's failure to provide access to global health experts made the COVID-19 pandemic worse than it had to be, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Sunday, and it was important to "get to the bottom" of the origin of the novel coronavirus.

Kyrgyzstan referendum backs presidential rule

BISHKEK -Voters in Kyrgyzstan supported handing greater powers to the presidency in a referendum on Sunday, confirming public trust in the populist head of state Sadyr Japarov, although the turnout was low. The constitutional reform will bring the political system of the Central Asian...

Amid false starts, COVID and a close race, Peru's presidential vote gets underway

By Marco Aquino LIMA -Peruvians headed out to vote on Sunday in a presidential election marked by uncertainty due to widespread public apathy following decades of graft and mismanagement and a possible low turnout because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Polls opened at 7 a.m. ...

Muslim health professionals urge community to get vaccinated even whilst observing Ramadan

Mosques are preparing for Ramadan after the holy month had to be observed during coronavirus (Covid-19) restrictions last year without the usual community prayer gatherings. Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, begins with the first sighting of the new moon. It’s expected on 13 April th...

India bans Remdesivir exports as coronavirus rages on; rallies continue

By Devjyot Ghoshal and Krishna N. Das NEW DELHI - India on Sunday banned the export of anti-viral drug Remdesivir and its active pharmaceutical ingredients as demand rocketed due to a record surge in COVID-19 infections, leading to a crippling shortages in many parts. ...

South Korea to resume wider use of AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, exclude people under 30

SEOUL - South Korean authorities said on Sunday they will move ahead with a second-quarter coronavirus vaccination drive starting on Monday as planned after deciding to continue using AstraZeneca's vaccine for all eligible people 30 years old or over. South Korea had said on Wedn...

India reports record 152,879 new COVID-19 infections

NEW DELHI - India reported a record 152,879 new COVID-19 cases, health ministry data showed on Sunday, as a second-wave of infections continued to surge and overwhelm hospitals in parts of the country. The number of new fatalities stood at 839, the most deaths in more than five mo...

Tokyo Olympic organisers to secure 300 hotel rooms for athletes with COVID-19-Kyodo

TOKYO - Tokyo Olympic organisers plan to prepare 300 hotel rooms for athletes who test positive for the coronavirus at this summer's Games but show no or minor symptoms of COVID-19, Kyodo news agency said on Sunday. Japan's government is placing Tokyo under a month-long state of "...

U.S. has administered 183.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, CDC says

- The United States had administered 183,467,709 doses of COVID-19 vaccines and distributed 237,791,735 doses as of Saturday morning, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Those figures are up from the 178,837,781 doses the CDC said had been administered by Apr...

Mexico reports 2,192 new coronavirus deaths after data review

MEXICO CITY -Mexico's government on Saturday reported 2,192 new confirmed coronavirus deaths, one of its biggest one-day tolls during the pandemic, after consolidating data from last year to include deaths that were not confirmed at the time. The figure was far above the daily average...

India's COVID-19 infections hit another record, weekend lockdown in Maharashtra

NEW DELHI - India reported a record 145,384 new COVID-19 cases, health ministry data showed on Saturday, as the country grappled with a overwhelming second-wave of infections. A five-month high 794 deaths brought the toll to 168,436. India's overall caseload was 13.2...

India reports a record 145,384 COVID-19 infections

NEW DELHI - India reported a record 145,384 new COVID-19 cases, health ministry data showed on Saturday, as the country grappled with a overwhelming second-wave of infections. A five-month high 794 deaths brought the toll to 168,436. India's overall caseload was 13.2...

Vaccitech, startup behind AstraZeneca-Oxford's COVID-19 vaccine, files for U.S. IPO

Biotech startup Vaccitech Plc, which owns the technology behind the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca Plc, filed for a U.S. initial public offering on Friday.

Judge hands Amazon a setback in New York lawsuit over COVID-19 shortfalls

NEW YORK -A federal judge on Friday ruled against Amazon.com Inc as it defends against a lawsuit by New York Attorney General Letitia James over the online retailer's handling of worker safety issues around the COVID-19 pandemic at two New York City warehouses. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manh...

Judge rules against Amazon in New York lawsuit over COVID-19 shortfalls

NEW YORK - A federal judge on Friday ruled against Amazon.com Inc as it defends against a lawsuit by New York Attorney General Letitia James over the online retailer's handling of worker safety issues around the COVID-19 pandemic at two warehouses. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff i...

Ireland adds U.S., France, Italy to tough hotel quarantine regime

DUBLIN - Ireland added the United States, Canada, Belgium, France and Italy to its list of countries where arrivals will be subject to mandatory hotel quarantine, tightening some of Europe's toughest travel restrictions to stop the spread of COVID-19. Ireland will also require pas...

Italy eases COVID-19 curbs as infections decline, but deaths still high

ROME - Lockdown measures will be eased from Monday in six Italian regions, the health ministry ruled on Friday, even as the nationwide daily death toll remains well above 400. New infections have fallen by 30% over the last five days compared with the same period last week, and th...

White House says J&J remains committed to meeting its COVID vaccine contract

WASHINGTON - The Biden administration says Johnson & Johnson remains committed to meeting its COVID-19 vaccine contract of delivering close to 100 million doses by the end of May, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Friday. (Reporting By Steve Holland...

Gasquet pulls out of Monte Carlo following COVID-19 related complications

- Frenchman Richard Gasquet said on Friday that he was pulling out of next week's Monte Carlo Masters because of "complications related to COVID-19". The world number 49, who reached the semi-finals of the claycourt Masters in 2005, has had a tough start to the season, notably not...

Blame game starts early as Hartlepool election looms

Twitter spat between Femi and Owen Jones, shows that data can tell you anything you want it to.

Explainer: How worried should we be about links of blood clots to AstraZeneca's vaccine?

By John Miller and Ludwig Burger ZURICH - Europe's drug regulator on Wednesday said it had found a possible link between AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine and very rare blood clots in adults who received the shot. Britain recommended people under 30 get an alternative COVID-19 vaccin...

Merkel to take control from German states in pandemic battle

By Andreas Rinke and Caroline Copley BERLIN -German Chancellor Angela Merkel plans to take control from federal states to impose restrictions on regions with high numbers of new coronavirus infections, a government spokeswoman said, as Germany struggles to curb a third wave of the pan...

Japan adds Tokyo, other areas to COVID-19 'quasi-emergency' state

TOKYO -Japan's government placed Tokyo under a new, month-long "quasi-emergency" state to combat surging COVID-19 case numbers on Friday, less than a month after the capital and host of the Summer Olympics lifted a broader state of emergency. In announcing the measures, Prime Minister...

Germany has started talks for Sputnik V vaccine - health minister

BERLIN - Germany is currently negotiating with Russia on an advance purchase agreement of its Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, Health Minister Jens Spahn said on Friday. Spahn told a news conference that the requirements were approval by the European Medicines Agency, as well as whethe...

UK 'depends practically entirely' on Europe for COVID-19 vaccines: EU's Breton

Britain "depends practically entirely" on the European Union for its COVID-19 vaccines, European Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton - who heads the EU executive's vaccine task force - told France Info on Friday.

France still in favour of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine-Veran

PARIS - The French health regulator should say later on Friday that Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine, like those developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, should be used as a second dose for people younger than 55 years who have received the AstraZeneca vaccine as their first shot, French Health Minister Ol...

Dollar bounce loses steam; AstraZeneca worries dent sterling

By Tom Westbrook SINGAPORE -The dollar advanced slightly on Friday but was headed for its softest week of the year as strong data in Europe, surprisingly weak U.S. jobs figures and a determinedly accommodative Federal Reserve have prompted investors to trim bets on the greenback. ...

Italy could sign contract with Moderna for more vaccine doses - paper

ROME - Italy's government is in talks with Moderna Inc and could soon sign a contract with the group for further COVID-19 vaccine doses, on top of those supplied under a broader European Union agreement, Italian daily la Repubblica reported on Friday. The deal would not go agains...