Covid-19: UK vaccine rollout set to begin with queen in line for jab

LONDON, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II will receivethe Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine within weeks, as the biggest immunisation programme in UK history begins next week. The monarch, 94, and her 99-year-old husband Prince Philip are in line toget the jab early in the rollout, which gets underway Tuesday,…

OIC draws US$ 1.2m for Gambia to run Rohingya genocide case

NIAMEY, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — An OIC fund raising campaign for The Gambia to support its legal battle seeking redressal of Rohingya genocide in International Court of Justice (ICJ) drew so far US$1.2 million while the West African nation said it urgently needed $5million to pay the lawyers. Officials at…

Peru farm workers protest continues derailing harvests and blocking roadways

LIMA, Dec 5 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Protests by farmworkers demanding better wages in Peru raged on, spreading north into key agricultural areas of the Andean nation, derailing harvests of some crops, snarling transport of produce and leaving at least one dead. Peruvian interim President Francisco Sagasti called the death of a…

Ethiopia aid delayed amid ongoing fighting – UN

More than 45,000 people have fled Tigray and crossed into Sudan ADDIS ABABA, Dec 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Continued fighting in many parts of Ethiopia’s Tigray region is hindering efforts to deliver aid, the UN says. Millions of people are said to be running out of food and medicines. UN officials…

Covid-19: Pres Obrador urges Mexicans to avoid exchanging Christmas presents to stop pandemic

MEXICO CITY, Dec 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mexicans should cancel celebrations and even avoid exchanging Christmas presents to beat the coronavirus, the president said, pitching a frugal festive season to one of the world’s largest capital cities as infections scaled new heights. “Let’s leave Christmas presents for another time,” President Andres Manuel…

UN chief urges Karabakh talks under international format

A group of Azerbaijani soldiers entering the abandoned town of Kalbajar last week UNITED NATIONS, Dec 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for renewed negotiations over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region under a long-established international process after a ceasefire halted recent fighting there. Russia, the United States and France…

Covid-19: US Pres-elect Biden says jobs report is ‘grim,’ warns of ‘dark winter’ as pandemic rages

WILMINGTON (Delaware, US), Dec 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — President-elect Joe Biden said “grim” jobs report shows the economic recovery is stalling and warned the “dark winter” ahead would exacerbate the pain unless the US Congress passes a coronavirus relief bill immediately. “The situation requires urgent action,” Biden said in a statement. “Americans need help…

Covid-19: President Dodon expects Moldova to receive Russian vaccine soon

MOSCOW, Dec 5 (NNN-TASS) — Moldovan President Igor Dodon expressedhope that his country would receive Russian-made vaccine against the novel coronavirus soon. “Literally this week, a phone conversation took place between MoldovanPrime Minister Ion Chicu and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. We have also filed an official request. We hope…

Update: Johnson, EU chief to hold emergency call as Brexit talks paused

LONDON/BRUSSELS, Dec 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — British and European negotiators broke off their talks on a post-Brexit trade deal without agreement Friday and handed off the task of clearing the logjam to Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU chief Ursula von der Leyen. The leaders will hold a telephone call on…

Mine collapse in Nicaragua traps at least 10

MANAGUA, Dec 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A mudslide in an unlicensed gold mine in Nicaragua trapped at least 10 workers Friday, state-run media reported. Crews began work to try to rescue the miners after the accident in the La Esperanza region of southern Nicaragua. Vice President Rosario Murillo, who is also…