This year Germany will donate more vaccine doses than planned to poorer countries. Chancellor Angela Merkel said after a meeting with African heads of state and government, it was not 30 million, but 70 million cans, as previously planned.
Merkel called it a “dramatic injustice” that 60 percent of people in Europe and only two percent of people in Africa were vaccinated against the corona virus. “We have to overcome this quickly,” said the Chancellor. (08/27/2021)
US intelligence report: Unclear origin of virus
After several months of examination, the US secret services are still divided on the origin of the corona virus. Whether the virus came from a laboratory or jumped from an animal to humans is open, it said in a report published on Friday. Both are “plausible hypotheses”. But one is certain that the virus was not developed as a biological weapon. There is also consensus that the Chinese authorities had no knowledge of the virus before the first Covid-19 outbreak.
In order to clarify the question of the origin of the virus, one needs above all the support of China. “However, Beijing continues to obstruct the global investigation, refuse to share information and blame other countries, including the United States,” the report said. US President Joe Biden hired the secret services in May to get to the bottom of the origin of the corona pandemic. At the time, he had instructed them to submit a further report on this within 90 days. In a first report, the secret services had already come to different assessments. “The world deserves answers, and I will not rest until we get them,” was how Biden responded to the new report. Therefore, China will continue to be urged to provide relevant information.
For a long time, there have been unsubstantiated suspicions that the coronavirus could have come from a laboratory in the Chinese city of Wuhan and may have been released in a laboratory accident. The Chinese have so far vehemently denied such allegations. The corona virus first appeared in Wuhan. (08/27/2021)
The Czech Republic puts Germany on red for Corona-Ampfel
In view of the increasing number of infections on its corona traffic light, the Czech Republic classifies Germany as a red country with a high risk of infection. The change will apply from Monday, announced the Ministry of Health in Prague. This makes it much more difficult for unvaccinated tourists from the Federal Republic to enter the Czech Republic. Not only do you have to show a negative PCR test, you also have to go into quarantine upon arrival in the Czech Republic. This can be ended on the fifth day at the earliest with a second negative PCR test result.
If you have been fully vaccinated for at least 14 days, you only have to fill out the mandatory online registration form. The Czech Republic relies on the EU’s digital Covid certificate, which also serves as an entry ticket for hotels, restaurants and swimming pools. In addition to Germany, the holiday island of Madeira and the Balearic Islands are new to the red traffic light category.
In the Czech Republic itself, the number of corona cases remains comparatively low. According to current figures, there were twelve new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days. More than 5.6 million of the country’s 11.7 million residents are fully vaccinated. (08/27/2021)
Denmark requires corona tests from unvaccinated travelers from Germany
Denmark changed its entry rules for Germans on Friday. According to the Danish Foreign Ministry, anyone who has not been vaccinated or recovered will have to be tested for Corona after entering the country. The reason is that Germany is no longer classified as a green country on the European Health Agency’s infection map, but as a yellow country. According to the ministry, the Schleswig-Holstein border region is not affected by the regulation. This means that border residents can continue to drive across the Danish border without a test. The regulation applies from Saturday. (08/27/2021)
Every second adolescent in the US has at least a primary vaccination
About half of 12 to 17 year old Americans have had at least one vaccination against Covid-19. This is announced by the coordinator of the Presidential Office for the fight against the corona pandemic, Jeff Zients. This age group also has the highest increases in vaccination rates. In addition, the vaccination campaign is getting momentum from the fact that US companies are asking their employees to immunize. (08/27/2021)
The US Supreme Court allows evictions again despite the pandemic
The U.S. Supreme Court has blocked a moratorium designed to protect defaulting tenants from evictions during the corona pandemic. For a nationwide postponement of this kind, it would have required the approval of Congress, the judges said. According to experts, hundreds of thousands of tenants in the US could now face eviction lawsuits.
The temporary moratorium was issued by the US health authority CDC in early August after a previous regulation expired. Landlords and real estate groups took legal action against it. The eviction protection for tenants up to a certain income limit should apply until October for all parts of the country in which the number of corona infections is rising rapidly. The increase in infections due to the particularly contagious Delta variant made this necessary, the health authority had argued.
The US government was disappointed. Because of the court’s decision, families are now confronted with the painful effects of evictions, criticized a White House spokeswoman. President Joe Biden again urges states and local authorities to prevent evictions.
The original CDC rule was not renewed and expired at the end of July following an objection from the Supreme Court in which Conservative judges are in the majority. Efforts to pass a new legal regulation at short notice failed. The left wing of the ruling Democrats in Congress then ran a storm and spoke of millions of victims. The MPs accused the Biden government of failure. (08/27/2021)
New Zealand extends corona lockdown again
New Zealand is extending the nationwide lockdown for another four days due to dozens of new corona cases. At the same time, the government announced loosening of the strict rules in large parts of the country from next Wednesday. On Friday, the authorities in the Pacific state recorded 70 new infections within 24 hours, mostly in the metropolis of Auckland on the North Island. However, cases were recently reported in the capital Wellington.
Schools and non-essential businesses are currently closed in New Zealand. Citizens are only allowed to leave the house under certain conditions. While some restrictions on regions south of Auckland could be lifted in the middle of next week, they are expected to remain in place in the city itself for some time, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said. Ten days ago, after just one case in Auckland, Ardern imposed a nationwide lockdown. It was the first known local corona case in almost six months. Until then, infections had only been detected at the border.
The island state had largely isolated itself from the outside world in March 2020. In April, the government opened a travel corridor with neighboring Australia, but it was closed again at the end of July due to a corona wave down under. (08/27/2021)
For the first time, more than 1000 new infections in the greater Sydney area
The Australian state of New South Wales with the metropolis of Sydney has recorded more than 1000 new infections within one day for the first time since the beginning of the corona pandemic. Authorities reported 1,029 new cases within 24 hours. Despite a strict lockdown that has been in place for eight weeks, the region on the east coast has not yet got the latest virus wave under control.
At the same time, the state’s head of government, Gladys Berejiklian, announced slight easing of the rules for fully vaccinated people. From September 13, groups of up to five people will be allowed to meet outside – but only within a radius of five kilometers from their place of residence.
Berejiklian announced further easing as soon as 70 percent of the state’s eight million residents are vaccinated. Currently, just under 33 percent of New South Wales citizens have full vaccination coverage.
Australia, with its 25 million inhabitants, cut itself off from the outside world when the pandemic began. Thanks to the island’s location as a continent and extremely strict rules, the authorities had the virus under control for a long time. However, they have been fighting the heaviest wave to date for weeks – especially in the greater Sydney area. Experts blame the sluggish vaccination campaign and the delta variant for the increasing numbers. (08/26/2021)