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“As winter approaches again and as people get prepared for the holidays … we should be prepared for the fact that there may be an uptick in cases that we see in various parts of the country with cold weather,” Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said.

As the cold days set in, the United States is again seeing a surge of COVID-19 cases, though deaths and hospitalizations trend lower, while the federal government’s vaccine mandate consistently faces legal challenges and sectoral resistence.

According to The New York Times, the seven-day average of confirmed cases of the pandemic stood at 80,885 nationwide on Sunday, with its 14-day change striking an 11-percent rise. COVID-19-related deaths were 1,133 on Sunday, with the 14-day change realizing a 16-percent fall.

On Monday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated that 226,607,653 people have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, making up 68.3 percent of the whole U.S. population; fully vaccinated people stood at 195,120,470, accounting for 58.8 percent of the total. A total of 29,338,966 people, or 15 percent of the fully vaccinated group, have received booster shots.

A student of Montrara Ave. Elementary School has a COVID-19 test in Los Angeles, California, the United States, on Aug. 16, 2021. (Xinhua)

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FORMIDABLE WINTER

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy warned on Sunday during an appearance on Fox News that parts of the country with colder temperatures could see a resurgence in the coronavirus this year if vaccinations do not increase.

“As winter approaches again and as people get prepared for the holidays … we should be prepared for the fact that there may be an uptick in cases that we see in various parts of the country with cold weather,” Murthy said.

He argued that the impact of the virus would be significantly reduced in areas with high vaccination rates, saying that “a couple of things that are critical for people to keep in mind and number one is if you are vaccinated … your chances of both getting sick and transmitting the virus to someone else are much much lower.”

Meanwhile, as COVID-19 disruptions extended into a third academic year, implementation of in-school testing remains mixed, reported The Wall Street Journal on Monday. Some schools are making changes to COVID-19 protocols as students between 5 and 11 years of age start getting vaccinated. Around 900,000 children in that age range had received a first shot through Wednesday, the White House said.

Some states and schools kicked off comprehensive testing programs during the previous school year, while others are starting to launch initiatives or have rejected the available resources. Setting up robust testing routines can be expensive and laborious, some schools have said. Some health departments and officials have been slow to roll out testing programs or to explain the benefits of in-school screening.

Some public health experts hope the test-to-stay model will encourage more schools and parents to adopt testing programs and help students stay in the classroom. “That’s a game-changer,” Andrew Sweet, managing director of COVID-19 Response and Recovery at the Rockefeller Foundation, was quoted as saying.

Photo taken on Feb. 19, 2020 shows the Pentagon seen from an airplane over Washington D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

TUG OF WAR

The U.S. Pentagon has said that it would respond to Oklahoma’s Republican governor after the state’s National Guard indicated it would thwart a Defense Department mandate that troops be vaccinated against COVID-19, CNN reported.

The department said it was “aware” of a memo issued last week by the Oklahoma National Guard’s recently installed adjutant general which said the organization would not enforce the department’s vaccine mandate for its troops. The Pentagon mandated in August that U.S. military service members get fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

The development in Oklahoma came as multiple Republican-led states and other groups have filed suit to stop the Joe Biden administration’s vaccine requirement for federal contractors. A federal appeals court on Friday reaffirmed its earlier decision to freeze a separate vaccine mandate that private businesses employing more than 100 workers require vaccination or impose testing guidelines for those not vaccinated.

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said that if courts continue to block the Biden administration’s efforts to soon compel large companies to require a COVID-19 vaccine or face weekly testing, it would be “a setback for public health.”

He told Fox News on Sunday that vaccine mandates are well-established and highly successful in achieving more widespread vaccination. Schools, the military and workplaces such as hospitals have long required vaccines. Many companies have leapt ahead of a federal order, he noted, and imposed one on their own employees.

At the heart of the vaccine mandate strategy, he said, is the creation of “safer workplaces for workers, for customers and to increase vaccination rates overall, because that’s ultimately how we’re going to end this pandemic.”

Published : November 16, 2021

By : Xinhua

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The Polish Defense Ministry said that the number of migrants gathered at the Kuznica border crossing has been steadily growing. The latest reports estimated their number at between 2,000 and 4,000.

Foreign ministers of the European Union (EU) have agreed on new sanctions against Belarus over the migrant crisis, the bloc’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said on Monday.

Addressing a press conference after the ministers’ meeting, he said the new set of sanctions had been “politically adopted” and “will be finalized in the coming days.” The sanctions will affect “quite an important number” of individuals and entities, he added.

“By expanding the scope of the sanctions, we will be able to target those responsible for exploiting vulnerable migrants and for facilitating illegal border crossing into the EU,” Borrell said.

The EU has been blaming Belarus for the current migrant crisis at its external borders. Belarus has denied the accusation and expressed its readiness for dialogue.

Josep Borrell speaks at a press briefing after the EU foreign ministers

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BelTA News Agency reported on Sunday that Belarusian Foreign Affairs Minister Vladimir Makei had told the EU that his country would try to reduce migrant flows from Asia, Africa and the Middle East to the EU.

Borrell said Monday that he had spoken to Makei and demanded that assistance should be given to provide humanitarian aid to the stranded migrants.

Also on Monday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko held a phone conversation on the situation at the border, especially regarding humanitarian aid for the migrants there, according to media reports.

Josep Borrell speaks at a press briefing after the EU foreign ministers

So far, 166 individuals and 15 entities have been designated under the EU’s sanctions on Belarus, according to the bloc’s external action service. According to Lukashenko, the sanctions have dented his country’s ability to tackle the crisis.

Meanwhile, Poland’s deputy interior minister said Monday that thousands of migrants were trying to cross from Belarus into Poland near the Kuznica border crossing.

“Thousands of migrants have moved from their camp to the closed Kuznica crossing under the supervision of Belarusian security forces,” Maciej Wasik wrote on Twitter, adding that the Polish authorities were “ready for every scenario.”

The Polish Defense Ministry said that the number of migrants gathered at Kuznica has been steadily growing. The latest reports estimated their number at between 2,000 and 4,000.   

Published : November 16, 2021

By : Xinhua

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40008857

A virtual meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden will be held on Tuesday morning (Beijing Time).

The two presidents will exchange views on China-U.S. relations and issues of mutual interest in the meeting, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.

Published : November 16, 2021

By : Xinhua

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40008854

The U.K. raised its terrorist threat level from substantial to severe, meaning an attack is highly likely, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson convened a meeting of the countrys emergency committee Cobra to discuss a blast in Liverpool, northern England.

“Ican’t comment on details of the case or the motivation, but it is a stark reminder of the need to remain utterly vigilant,” Johnson said at a Downing Street news conference on Monday.

Police have classified the explosion on Sunday as a terrorist incident, the second in a month. It occurred just one minute before annual remembrance services for those who died serving Britain in war.

In October, Conservative MP David Amess was fatally stabbed at a meeting in his constituency, with police saying at the time the suspect might have had links to Islamist extremism.

Merseyside Police were called to reports of an explosion involving a taxi outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital at 10:59 a.m. on Sunday. The passenger died and the driver was injured. Four men were later arrested in the city.

Footage circulated online shows the taxi pulling up to the hospital’s parking lot. As the bomb explodes, the driver gets out.

Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson, from Counter-Terrorism Policing North West, told reporters on Monday that the passenger was carrying a homemade bomb.

“Although the motivation for this incident is yet to be understood, given all the circumstances it has been declared a terrorist incident,” he said. “Counter-terrorism policing are continuing with the investigation.”

Published : November 16, 2021

By : Bloomberg

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President Joe Biden on Monday signed into law a sweeping $1.2 trillion infrastructure measure, notching an achievement that had long eluded his predecessor in the White House, Donald Trump.

Republicans and Democrats gathered at the White House on Monday as Biden signed the legislation, which is aimed at improving the country’s roads, bridges, pipes, ports and Internet connections.

Trump had repeatedly tried and failed to secure a bipartisan infrastructure deal.

“Here in Washington, we’ve heard countless speeches, promises and white papers from experts. But today, we’re finally getting this done,” Biden said.

Vice President Kamala Harris and several lawmakers spoke ahead of Biden at the ceremony, including Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y.; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.; and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., and Rob Portman, R-Ohio.

“This is what can happen when Republicans and Democrats decide we’re going to work together to get something done,” Portman said.

Harris said the infrastructure push “will be a nationwide effort, the likes of which we have not seen in a generation.” She also urged lawmakers to pass the Build Back Better plan, a second package that aims to overhaul the country’s health-care, education, immigration, climate and tax laws. The House is expected to take up the measure this week.

Sinema thanked Sens. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; Susan Collins, R-Maine; and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, calling them “the Wonder Women of our group, always focused on the practical outcomes.”

Several Republicans, including Sens. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Mitt Romney of Utah, and Rep. Tom Reed of New York were also in attendance.

The mood at the ceremony on the White House lawn was celebratory, with members of Congress expressing gratitude for the cooperation of those across the aisle – a rare occurrence.

Biden, who has often spoken longingly about the days of compromise and consensus, seemed in good spirits as he touted the benefits of the new law and the bipartisan manner in which it was achieved – with no mention of the vitriol that Trump and his supporters have lodged at the Republicans who voted for the infrastructure bill.

At one point, Biden praised Portman as a “hell of a good guy,” then quipped: “I’m not hurting you, Rob, because I know you’re not running again.”

Within moments of the signing, Republicans and Democrats issued news releases detailing the projects that will be built in their home states and districts. Collins, the Republican senator from Maine, said the bill would provide $225 million to her state for bridge construction, maintenance and repair.

The Senate first passed the infrastructure bill in August with a 69-30 vote, the rare type of partnership Biden committed to in the 2020 campaign. The measure languished in the House for months, though, as liberal lawmakers sought to use their leverage to advance Biden’s larger climate and social spending bill.

The bill finally passed the House earlier this month on a 228 to 206 vote, with 13 Republicans joining with most Democrats in voting yes.

Earlier Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that Biden “invited everybody who supported it because he felt that was the right thing to do.”

“Whether people come or not, that’s their choice,” she said.

The White House also announced that Biden has tapped former New Orleans mayor Mitch Landrieu to serve as senior adviser for coordinating the infrastructure plan’s implementation.

Some supporters of the measure, such as New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, D, traveled to Washington for the event.

Some of the Republicans who voted for the bill opted not to attend, however, amid criticism from the conservative base over their votes for a signature part of Biden’s agenda. Trump has said Republicans who voted for the measure – 19 senators and 13 House members – should be “ashamed of themselves” for “helping the Democrats.”

Several House Republicans who backed the legislation have been threatened and harassed; last week, Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan released the audio of an expletive-filled phone call in which a man in South Carolina called him a “traitor” and said he hopes the congressman, his staff and his entire family die.

Other Republican lawmakers – most notably Trump loyalists Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina – have led criticism and attacks against their colleagues who backed the bill.

Greene, a House freshman who has previously accosted fellow members at the Capitol, said earlier this month that any House Republican who backed the measure would be “a traitor to our party, a traitor to their voters and a traitor to our donors.”

After the vote, Greene tweeted the names and phone numbers of 12 of the 13 Republicans who voted in favor of the bill, which she described as “Joe Biden’s Communist takeover of America.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who voted for the bill and drew Trump’s wrath, has even tried to give more credit to his Senate caucus for helping pass the package.

McConnell, however, will not be attending Monday’s signing ceremony. He told a Kentucky radio station last week that he has “other things I’ve got to do.”

Published : November 16, 2021

By : The Washington Post

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The number of Covid-19 cases crossed 13.62 million across Southeast Asia, with 25,571 new cases reported on Monday (November 15), lower than Sunday’s tally at 26,176. New deaths are at 365, decreasing from Sunday’s number of 525. Total Covid-19 deaths in Asean are now at 284,890.

The Government of Laos on November 14 announced the re-opening of schools across the country while some other Covid-19 restriction measures continue to be extended nationwide for additional 15 days starting from 0:00 on November 15. Accordingly, Laos continues to close border gates, except for those permitted to open by the Lao National Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control, stop issuing visas for tourists and relatives.

On November 15, thousands of children in the Philippines have returned to school for the first time in nearly two years, kicking off a pilot scheme to resume face-to-face learning after the pandemic disrupted the education of 27 million students. Education Minister has said that over 100 schools from the total of 61,000 schools nationwide have been selected to reopen for 2-month trial period. The number of schools participating in the trial run is expected to increase in the next few weeks, especially those in low-risk areas.
 

Published : November 16, 2021

By : THE NATION

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LONDON – British police said Monday that a car explosion that killed one person and injured another Sunday outside a hospital in northwestern England was a “terrorist incident,” although a precise motive remains unclear.

The blast occurred on Sunday just before 11 a.m. local time as a taxi pulled up outside an entrance of Liverpool Women’s Hospital. Video footage shared on social media shows the blast ripping through the vehicle, which then bursts into flames. One passenger, who has not been publicly identified, was declared dead at the scene.

“Although the motivation for this incident is yet to be understood, given all the circumstances, it has been declared a terrorist incident and counterterrorism policing are continuing with the investigation,” Russ Jackson, head of counterterrorism policing in northwestern England, said Monday.

Police arrested three men under the country’s terrorism legislation on Sunday. The Greater Manchester Police said the men, ages 29, 26 and 21, were arrested in Kensington, an area of Liverpool that has a high poverty rate. Jackson said Monday that a fourth man, age 20, was also arrested under the Terrorism Act.

The taxi driver picked up a passenger about 10 minutes away from the hospital, and an explosion occurred within the car as the taxi approached the drop-off point, police said. Jackson said the incident involved the ignition of an explosive device that was brought into the cab by the passenger.

“Our enquiries will now continue to seek to understand how the device was built, the motivation for the incident and to understand if anyone else was involved in it,” Jackson said in a statement he read out at a news briefing.

The driver, who was able to escape, was hospitalized in stable condition and was subsequently released.

He was praised for his apparent efforts to limit the impact of the explosion in his vehicle by reportedly locking the passenger inside the cab.

“It does look as though the taxi driver in question did behave with incredible presence of mind and bravery,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday. He noted that the investigation is ongoing and said it was premature to share further details.

Johnson’s office said he will chair a meeting of the government’s crisis committee on Monday afternoon in response to the attack.

Liverpool Mayor Joanne Anderson told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program that the taxi driver had “stood out and locked the doors” of his cab, and in his “heroic efforts, has managed to divert what could have been an absolutely awful disaster at the hospital.”

Questions have been raised about the timing of the explosion, which occurred on Remembrance Sunday, a day when Britain pays tribute to its war dead by observing two minutes of silence starting at 11 a.m. Officers said they have not drawn any link between the occasion and the incident but that it remains a “line of inquiry.”

Police and firefighters arrived shortly after 11 a.m. Sunday and extinguished the fire engulfing the taxi.

Carl Bessant was inside the hospital at the time of the blast with his wife, who had just given birth. He said his wife was shaken up by the incident, which occurred as she was feeding their new baby.

“We were so close. … We heard a loud bang and looked out of the window,” he told state broadcaster BBC. “We saw the car on fire and someone jump out … screaming, and there was someone inside the car.”

Johnson said on Twitter that his “thoughts are with those affected by the awful incident,” and he thanked emergency services for their swift response.

Detectives from Counter Terrorism Policing North West said they were working with local and regional police and continuing to “keep an open mind about the cause of the explosion,” the BBC reported.

“We would urge the public to remain calm but vigilant,” Chief Constable Serena Kennedy of the Merseyside Police said at a news conference.

Liverpool Women’s Hospital said it would restrict visiting hours until further notice.

Published : November 16, 2021

By : THE NATION

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A new wave of Covid-19 infections in Europe has forced nine countries to reimpose lockdown measures, which is getting people to wonder if relying on Covid-19 vaccines is enough to contain the spread of the virus?

The vaccination rate in Europe has declined in the winter months as approximately 65 per cent of the population has already been double jabbed.

However, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Friday that the Covid-19 situation in Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland and Slovenia is worsening.

Meanwhile, lockdown measures have been reimposed in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Latvia, Czech Republic, Russia, Slovakia, Norway and Iceland.

Rising Covid cases force 9 European countries to go under lockdown again

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Published : November 15, 2021

By : THE NATION

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U.S. Democrats are urging President Joe Biden to expand COVID-19 vaccine requirements for international air travelers to people traveling within the United States so as to minimize the risk of spikes in COVID-19 cases after the Thanksgiving holiday.

Democratic lawmakers are urging U.S. President Joe Biden to require that all airline passengers either show proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 or a negative coronavirus test before boarding a domestic flight, reported Business Insider on Sunday.

“This is a necessary and long overdue step toward ensuring all Americans feel safe and confident while traveling and reduce the chances of yet another devastating winter surge,” said a request letter signed by more than 30 Democrats and sent to Biden on Nov. 11.

The letter came as millions plan to travel for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. An estimation from the American Automobile Association said over 53 million people were planning to travel to see loved ones for Thanksgiving this year. Of that, about 4.2 million people were expected to travel by air.

Travelers walk through terminals at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, the United States, Nov. 8, 2021. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)

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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has advised people to avoid taking domestic flights unless they are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. The White House announced last month that international travelers coming into the United States must show proof of full vaccination to enter.

The Democrats who signed on the letter are urging that Biden expand that mandate to people traveling within the United States so as to minimize the risk of spikes in COVID-19 cases after the holiday.

“We applaud your adoption of vaccine requirements for international air travelers coming to the United States. It is in the best interest of our nation’s public health to adopt these vaccination requirements for U.S. air travel,” said the letter.

Tourists spend time on the National Mall in Washington D.C., the United States on Oct. 30, 2021, one day after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in children 5 through 11 years of age. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)

GOOD NEWS

The United States administered over 9.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the past seven days, the highest weekly total since late May, the White House’s COVID-19 data director Cyrus Shahpar tweeted on Saturday. Vaccinations of children ages 5 to 11, which became widely available this week, likely contributed to the total.

On Sunday, the CDC updated that 226,157,226 people had received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, making up 68.1 percent of the whole U.S. population. Fully vaccinated people stood at 194,951,106, accounting for 58.7 percent of the total. A total of 28,571,625 people, or 14.7 percent of fully vaccinated group, received booster shots.

New York State has opened 10 of its COVID-19 mass vaccination sites to children ages 5 to 11 who become newly eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine as it seeks to expand access beyond a network of doctors’ offices, local health departments, health centers and pharmacies. Over 50,000 children in the state have received at least one shot since Pfizer’s vaccine was approved for the age group.

On Saturday, Governor Kathy Hochul said that she had instructed the mass vaccination sites to acquire pediatric doses and prepare to administer them at those locations, adding the state aims to eventually offer the shots at all 13 of its vaccination sites in the days ahead.

California is among three U.S. states allowing coronavirus booster shots for all adults even though federal health officials recommend limiting doses to those considered most at risk.

The nation’s most populous state, along with Colorado and New Mexico, instituted the policies to try to head off a feared surge around the end-of-year holidays when more people are gathering inside.

SAD STORIES

COVID-19 cases are still climbing in places like the upper Midwest, Southwest and parts of the Northeast, “hindering the nation’s progress in ending a surge triggered by the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus,” reported The Wall Street Journal on Sunday.

Nationally, the seven-day average of new cases appears to be edging back up after hovering just above 70,000 for several weeks, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, halting what had been a decline from the Delta-fueled peak that began in September, it added.

Between Nov. 3 and 4, an estimated 112 children ages 5 to 11 were incorrectly administered a COVID-19 vaccine dose intended for people ages 12 and older at Ted Pharmacy in Aldie of Virginia, said the Virginia Department of Health in a statement on earlier this week.

“Our understanding is that Ted Pharmacy attempted to give the correct 10 microgram dosage to those under 12 by administering 0.1 ml of the adult formulation,” said David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Health Department. “Due to the very small volume used, and concerns raised by some parents as to whether 0.1 ml was actually administered, it is possible some children were under-dosed.”

The Lincoln Children’s Zoo in Nebraska announced Friday evening that three of its snow leopards had died of complications from COVID-19, adding that two Sumatran tigers who contracted the virus at the zoo had “seemingly” recovered.

“Our leopards, Ranney, Everest, and Makaly, were beloved by our entire community inside and outside of the zoo,” the zoo said in a statement. “This loss is truly heartbreaking, and we are all grieving together.” The zoo first reported that the tigers and snow leopards tested positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 13. 

Published : November 15, 2021

By : Xinhua