Category: Uncategorized

One year ago, the military seized power in Myanmar by force. The country has since descended into civil war fraught with human rights violations, but the international community has resisted imposing measures against the military regime. Members of Myanmar’s exile government spoke in Paris on January 31 about the role France and other countries can play against the junta.

NASA has committed to keeping the International Space Station in operation through 2030 to maximize scientific and tech returns

NASA announced on Monday that President Joe Biden’s administration has committed to extending the International Space Station’s (ISS) operations until 2030, as it continues planning for the transition to the future of space exploration.

In a press release, NASA’s director of the International Space Station, Robyn Gatens, stated the aim of the extension is to maximize returns in “exploration and human research technologies,” as well as “medical and environmental benefits.”

NASA is currently working with the private sector to “develop safe, reliable and cost-effective destinations in space,” which will replace the ISS, according to Phil McAlister, the director of commercial space.

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The US will continue to work with its international partners at the European Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Canadian Space Agency and Russian State Space Corporation Roscosmos, reflecting the ISS as a “beacon of peaceful international scientific collaboration.”

While the US extended operations until the end of the decade, it has not announced a specific timeline for deorbiting the ISS. Although NASA has previously said that it is working on plans for scheduled deorbiting and in any event where something goes wrong, as the ISS approaches the end of its lifespan.

People are wearing too much personal protective gear and must become conscious consumers, according to the UN health body

The huge amount of medical waste accumulated during the pandemic around the globe has become a health and environmental hazard, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Tuesday.

Billions of face masks, gloves, and full-body protective suits created some 87,000 tons of medical waste as the world battled Covid-19 between March 2020 and November 2021. Syringes, needles, and safety boxes from the vaccination drive added another 143 tons of litter, according to the agency.

Around 30% of healthcare facilities worldwide, especially those in poorer countries, were ill-equipped to cope with the existing waste before the emergence of the coronavirus. And the pandemic has put them under even more pressure, the WHO said. 

The agency stressed the “dire need” to improve medical waste management systems, adding that both the government and the public would have to chip in for this goal to be achieved.

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Investments must be boosted in the development of “non-burn waste treatment” technologies in order to protect the ecology, the WHO said.

It also advised producers to use “eco-friendly” packaging and shipping for medical products, as well as reusable equipment and recyclable or biodegradable materials.

“We find that people are wearing excessive PPE (personal protection equipment),” Dr. Margaret Montgomery, the technical officer of WHO’s water, sanitation, hygiene and health unit, said as cited by AP. “In terms of the volume, it’s enormous.”

The public should “become more of a conscious consumer” in order to help solve the medical waste problem, Montgomery pointed out.

Downing Street refuses to confirm whether they will disclose who is punished for the breaches

The prime minister’s spokesman made no guarantees that the fines for the lockdown-busting parties at Number 10 in 2020 and 2021 will be announced to the general public.

During a regular Westminster briefing, the spokesman told journalists that it was for the Metropolitan Police who are in charge of the ‘Partygate’ case to decide whether to make any of this information public.

“It will be the Met that sets out what they see fit at the conclusion of their work and I would not seek to set out what that may or may not be,” he was quoted as saying by Sky News.

The police have said that the names of those punished for breaching Covid regulations aren’t usually revealed.

Labour party deputy leader Angela Rayner has criticized this decision on social media, stating that the public has the “right to know” if the PM was found guilty of having committed a public offense.

“Number 10 said they would publish the full report. They cannot be allowed to backtrack or hide the results of the police investigation,” she concluded on Twitter.

I can’t believe this needs saying.
The public have a right to know if the Prime Minister is found to have committed an offence by the police.

Number 10 said they would publish the full report. They cannot be allowed to backtrack or hide the results of the police investigation. https://t.co/s7POt2y5jR

— Angela Rayner (@AngelaRayner) February 1, 2022

The Metropolitan Police are currently investigating a total of 12 events that allegedly took place in 2020 and 2021 while Covid-19 restrictions were in place nationwide. These occurrences include the prime minister’s birthday on 19 June 2020.

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The police have reported that they have gathered a total of 300 photos and 500 paper documents related to the allegations.

Another four events that allegedly took place at Number 10, in the prime minister’s office and residence from May to December 2020 have been investigated by senior civil servant Sue Gray. Her initial report on the case was revealed on Monday, and it stated that these gatherings were “difficult to justify.”

The Downing Street spokesman commented on Monday that the prime minister will ask Gray to “update her report” with new information when the Metropolitan Police investigation is completed, after which it will be published.

Ukraine and Russia-backed separatists break truce as tensions soar, but UN diplomat says no sign of major operations.

Police and councils are failing to collect data which would help identify paedophiles, an inquiry finds.

Tom Brady, one of the greatest players in NFL history, says he “feels like the luckiest person in the world” as he confirms his retirement.

Angela Rayner says people have the “right to know”, but the Met rules out naming anyone fined over parties.

New Super Green Pass restrictions are effective from February 1

Italian officials have introduced €100 fines for all people aged over 50 years – both Italian citizens and foreigners living in the country – who have not received a Covid-19 vaccine. Additionally, all employees aged over 50 will require a Super Green Pass in order to access their workplace starting from February 15.

Italy’s government has also updated current Covid Green Pass requirements and introduced new restrictions. The change in regulations is effective from Tuesday.

The country currently uses a two-tier Green Pass system: the ‘Basic’ version is available for everyone who has tested negative for Covid-19, and the ‘Super’ version can only be obtained by those who are vaccinated or have fully recovered from the virus.

Starting from February 1, the Super Green Pass is required to gain access to public transportation, outdoor and indoor restaurants and bars, hotels, cinemas, theaters, gyms, and stadiums. The Basic version for the unvaccinated still permits access to shops and supermarkets, pharmacies, and fuel stations, as well as barbers and hairdressers; from Tuesday it will also be required to visit public offices, banks, bookshops, and shopping malls.

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Italian media reports say the facilities are responsible for checking their visitors. Failing to enforce the new restrictions will result in a fine of between €400 and €1000 for the venue, as well as for visitors without a relevant Green Pass.

Other restrictions that were previously due to be lifted on January 31, such as mandatory masks in all outdoor areas and the closure of all nightclubs, discos, concerts, and outdoor parties, have been extended up to February 10.

Italy hit a new peak of the pandemic in mid-January, with a high of more than 228,000 new cases on January 18. The restrictions were announced by the Italian government during that period, becoming effective in February. As of today, more than 76% of Italians are fully vaccinated.

Austria was the first European country to announce mandatory vaccination for all adult citizens, with new rules effective from February 3. Greece has also introduced a monthly €100 fine for all elderly citizens who fail to get jabbed before February 2.

Amid rising Covid numbers, experts evaluate whether the country is ready for the challenge

As for 2022, Covid infection is not what we witnessed two years ago when the pandemic just started. The virus mutated, adapting to people’s immune defenses and vaccines. Now we have Omicron – a seemingly less virulent, but far more contagious variant.

India, a country with a very diverse population of 1.4 billion, has every reason to be concerned. The second Covid wave, which started in March 2021, was a dire challenge for the country. Experts called it a disaster, while media worldwide shared pictures of overwhelmed hospitals and people lining up for oxygen.

Second wave impact

Dr. Himanshu Shekhar, who works in the SCI International Hospital in New Delhi, recalls that time as a real shock. “The second wave was an eye-opener for all of us, for both young 35-year-old doctors of the new generation as well as senior doctors,” he told RT.

The case numbers overwhelmed the country’s healthcare system. Dr. Shekhar says the preparations seemed good enough, but there were too many people requiring medical help. “The number of people from Delhi and from the outside was so huge that our infrastructure could not cope with it,” he explains. “In the first 10 days everything was inadequate because we were just shocked.”

A Covid-19 coronavirus patient lays on a bed inside the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Teerthanker Mahaveer University (TMU) hospital in Moradabad on May 5, 2021. © Prakash SINGH / AFP

Hospitals were lacking beds and medicine; sometimes they couldn’t accept everyone. The country also suffered from an oxygen shortage. International media shared heartbreaking stories about doctors who had to choose who to treat, panicking relatives trying to find help, patients who had to stay at home as there were no spare beds for them. At the beginning of May 2021, the daily number of infections surpassed 400,000.

eople wait to refill their medical oxygen cylinders for the Covid-19 coronavirus patients under home quarantine at a private refill centre in New Delhi on May 7, 2021. © Prakash SINGH / AFP

“Then there was a national mobilization, things improved, but it all gave us a very big lesson,” Dr. Shekhar says. “When the second wave settled down, the government ordered any hospital with more than 100 beds to set up an oxygen plant. The oxygen dependency came down.”

A group of researchers from India and Australia analyzed the factors that made the second Covid wave in India so devastating. Last year, they published their conclusions in The Lancet medical journal. According to their analysis, there were various double-mutant and triple-mutant strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus circulating across the country. India’s population is dense, and people come into contact with each other a lot – conditions that the virus finds favorable to evolve, transform, and learn how to overcome immunity. One of the strains, the double-mutant B.1.617, known as Delta, pushed the surge in Covid cases not only in India, but all over the world.

The researchers also said the second Covid wave in India showed that not only old people, but everyone else, has the risk of a complicated infection. Each person’s body responds to the virus in its own way, and presumed strong immunity is not always a guarantee that the patient will survive. “A further observation in the peak of the second wave was the sudden decrease in the oxygen saturation of some patients, even when they were recovering well, giving less time for the proper ventilation support,” the study says.

Another factor that added to the severity of the second wave is the environmental situation in the country. One of the authors of the study, Dr. Sukhwinder Sohal from the School of Health Sciences at the University of Tasmania, told RT that environmental factors play a big role for highly-populated cities. “The air pollution, the high smoking rate – things of this kind are very important,” he said. “For patients with chronic diseases, or for smokers, a chance of getting the infection is higher, because the receptor which is used by the Covid virus is highly expressed in them.”

‘Vaccination like crazy’

According to Dr. Shekhar, the authorities adopted a lot of measures after the second wave. “The vaccination program went, you know, like crazy – 10 million people vaccinated in one day, education boosted for people to take the vaccine… All these measures are showing results.”

We doctors are surprised, because we still were prepared for shortages, as the population is so massive. But I don’t feel any working overload, any pressure, everything is adequate.

For now, half of the Indian population is fully vaccinated against Covid. At the beginning of January, people in the age group 15-18 became eligible for immunization. According to the Health Ministry, as of January 18, over half of them received the first dose. Now the country plans to start vaccinating children aged 12-14 in March.

tudents lineup to register to receive a Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine dose during a vaccination drive for youths in the 15-18 age group, at a girls high school in Hyderabad on January 6, 2022. © NOAH SEELAM / AFP

Was it difficult to achieve these results? Dr. Shekhar says that when you have such a big and diverse country, you cannot avoid certain obstacles. “We faced vaccine hesitancy in January 2021, when the vaccination started in India. There were some myths spreading, so we had to counter them. We started a lot of massive programs, and a lot of eminent personalities joined them, especially after the second wave,” he told RT.

“Many Bollywood personalities like Amitabh Bachchan and other actors who have a massive fan-following, our sport persons – they all went into it, they were showing people that they took the vaccine. So this turned the tide.”

Amitabh Bachchan, a 79-year-old Indian cinema legend, shared the news of his vaccination on Twitter, where he is followed by 47 million people, and on Instagram, where he has almost 30 million followers.

There’s no doubt that India’s rich cinematic tradition means a lot to people. Even the Health Ministry celebrated the 1-billion-vaccine milestone with a song and a movie.

As for Dr. Sohal, he says he is not aware of any vaccine hesitancy now. “I think people are very keen to get vaccinated.”

Omicron alert

Despite the global efforts to tackle the pandemic, last autumn, a new strain appeared – Omicron – this time from South Africa. It’s highly contagious but causes milder symptoms, and it can infect even vaccinated people… and it put the world on high alert again as infections skyrocketed.

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According to Dr. Sohal, the numbers we have now may not be accurate. “The main question is how much testing has been taken. Because some people who get sick just don’t report their symptoms. For example, they already got one or two doses of the vaccines, so when they suffer any symptoms, they just don’t report them. In three or four days they are already out of it. This factor has to be taken into account. The problem is not in the quality, because testing can be quite good, but it’s about the numbers.”

Omicron has caused some countries to tighten their Covid regulations, amid fears that the healthcare systems will not be able to cope with the pressure.

However, Dr. Shekhar believes the situation is not as bad as some expected. “The positivity rate till 31 December in India was almost negligible. But with this new Omicron strain, in the first week of January the positivity rate started rising,” he said. “But the good thing is that about 80% of the Covid hospitals are empty. A lot of people testing positive are asymptomatic, many prefer to just stay home in isolation for some five days. India is a big country with a very big population, so the numbers might look big, but if you ask me as a doctor, I don’t feel any pressure.”

‘Superspreader’ risk

One common concern for all countries during the pandemic has been mass gatherings. Regarding India, with its population of 1.4 billion, it’s easy to imagine how massive gatherings can be. In 2021, during the second wave, thousands of worshippers took part in Kumbh Mela – an important Hindu religious festival.

Naga Sadhus (Hindu holy men) take a holy dip in the waters of the Ganges River on the day of Shahi Snan (royal bath) during the ongoing religious Kumbh Mela festival, in Haridwar on April 12, 2021. © Money SHARMA / AFP

Despite the fact that the authorities imposed Covid restrictions during the celebration, one look at the footage from the ceremonies is all it takes to see that in crowds such as this, you can’t test everyone and prevent the virus from spreading.

International media raised ‘superspreader’ fears over the festival. Its role in increasing infections across the country was later proven by research.

A health worker collects a nasal swab sample from a Hindu devotee to test for the Covid-19 coronavirus during the ongoing religious Kumbh Mela festival in Haridwar on April 12, 2021. © Xavier GALIANA / AFP

This year, however, despite the third wave, religious ceremonies are still being celebrated. At the beginning of January, hundreds of thousands gathered in western India for the Gangasagar Mela festival. The authorities again set up certain restrictions… But can you ever be sure everyone is observing them in a large crowd?

“Doctors and scientists, we all called our government to stop such superspreader events,” Dr. Shekhar said. “I think they are taking precautionary measures, but if you ask me, they shouldn’t be allowed.”

Hindu pilgrims perform rituals after taking a holy dip at the confluence of Ganges and the Bay of Bengal. © DIBYANGSHU SARKAR / AFP

However, not all gatherings are allowed. Next month, five states, including the most populous, Uttar Pradesh, will vote in the assembly election. For now, physical rallies are banned, and the parties have turned to virtual campaigning.

“The main problem here is when you have 1.4 billion people, you have to take a lot of points of view into consideration, you can’t just dictate, here it would not work,” Dr. Shekhar said. “If you go slowly, explaining, convincing, then you get their consent and you can go forward. India is very diverse, so you have to control it all tactfully.”