Australia Twitter

Opinion: No new dawn in Germany's coronavirus measures

They seemed very tired after yet another meeting to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. Once again, they addressed the cameras and thanked the citizens of Germany, cited numbers and pronounced many "if and whens" — it's becoming almost routine. And once again, there was no genuine passionate appeal.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and her co-chairs, Bavarian state minister Markus Söder of the Christian Social Union (CSU) party and Berlin mayor Michael Müller of the Social Democrats (SPD), were exhausted after nine hours, and well over 20 crisis meetings over the past 12 months.

National People's Congress: China plans 'green transformation' of economy

The National People's Congress, China's annual parliamentary event, opens Friday in Beijing. For the second straight year, it will be a mostly virtual event because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Although the NPC is China's main legislature, the Communist Party ensures that important decisions are made long before any proposals reach the body.

The party sometimes uses the NPC to reveal major policy and personnel changes.

Old Delhi retains touristic charm despite adversity

Narrow lanes in New Delhi's old town embody the history of the Indian capital, with street food, bazaars and architecture that have captured the imagination of people from around the world.

How a coronavirus variant is overrunning Brazil

The numbers are alarming. On Tuesday, a new daily record was broken when 1,726 people died of COVID-19 in Brazil. The average death rate over the past week was 1,274. That's almost 25% higher than two weeks ago.

"We are currently experiencing the worst moment of the pandemic, with daily death tolls breaking new records and overburdened intensive care units all over the country," microbiologist Natalia Pasternak told DW.

Over 257,000 Brazilians have died of COVID-19 already. But the spread of the virus has picked up dramatically. On Tuesday, almost 60,000 new cases were registered.

Germany says AstraZeneca vaccine OK for over-65s after all

Germany's independent Standing Committee on Vaccination (Stiko) said on Thursday that the AstraZeneca vaccine can be administered to older people.

Germany had originally balked at approving the vaccine for those aged 65 and over due to efficacy concerns.

However, new data — and quite possibly the faltering national attempts to start vaccinating — caused German health authorities to change their minds.

EU blocks export of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines to Australia

The European Commission and Italy have blocked a shipment of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine destined for Australia after the pharmaceutical company did not fulfil its European Union contract commitments, sources said on Thursday.

It is the first time the EU has employed an export control mechanism it set up to ensure drug manufacturers respect their contracts.

The sources said AstraZeneca had reportedly requested authorization from the Italian government to export some 250,000 doses from its Anagni plant, close to Rome. The site is owned by US group Catalent.

COVID-19: Italy and EU block Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine shipment to Australia as shortages row escalates

The British-Swedish drug manufacturer had failed to meet its EU contract commitments so the Italian government refused its request to export 250,000 doses from its Anagni plant near Rome.

Italy made the request and it was signed off by the European Commission under a new export control system that came into law on 30 January. This is the first time it has been used by a member state.

ORLANDO, Fla. ― After years of claiming he was so rich he didn’t need anyone else’s money for his political campaigns, Donald Trump is officially asking small-dollar donors ― many of them lower income and older ― to send him cash, potentially hurting the Republican Party’s small-dollar program.

The request was tucked in near the end of his first public appearance since leaving the presidency Jan. 20, a 90-minute speech Sunday that largely recycled his oft-repeated lies about the November election and his record in office.

Marissa DuBois in Slow Motion Full Fashion Week 2023, Fashion Channel Vlog,

Thursday, March 4, 2021