Sunday, November 15, 2020

Six In The Morning Sunday 15 November 2020

 

Covid-19: Normal life back next winter, says vaccine creator

The impact of a new Covid vaccine will kick in significantly over summer and life should be back to normal by next winter, one of its creators has said.

Prof Ugur Sahin, BioNTech co-founder, also raised hopes the jab could halve transmission of the virus, resulting in a "dramatic reduction in cases".

Last week, BioNTech and co-developers Pfizer said preliminary analysis showed their vaccine could prevent more than 90% of people from getting Covid-19.


Hong Kong politicians face pro-democracy exodus

As Beijing tightens its grip, opposition groups fear that their support base is dwindling


Hong Kong’s battered pro-democracy opposition faces a bleak political future after a week that saw the entire bloc resign from the city’s legislature to protest at the ousting of four members for “unpatriotic” conduct under a new law.

Chinese authorities have signalled that those who walked out may not be able to stand in future elections on the grounds their protest was itself unpatriotic and therefore bars them from office, Sin Chung-kai, a member of the Democratic party executive board, told the broadcaster RTHK.

And if new candidates are willing to take the political risk of standing as pro-democratic, they are likely to face a shrinking voter base as people concerned about China’s tightening grip on Hong Kong seek to emigrate.


Israel advances plans in sensitive east Jerusalem settlement

A settlement watchdog group says Israel is moving ahead with the construction of hundreds of homes in a strategic Jerusalem settlement that threatens to cut off Palestinian-claimed parts of the city from the West Bank

Via AP news wire

A settlement watchdog group said Sunday Israel is moving ahead with new construction of hundreds of homes in a strategic east Jerusalem settlement that threatens to cut off parts of the city claimed by Palestinians from the West Bank

The group, Peace Now, said the Israel Land Authority announced on its website Sunday that it had opened up tenders for more than 1,200 new homes in the key settlement of Givat Hamatos in east Jerusalem.

The move may test ties with the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden who is expected to take a firmer tack against Israeli settlement expansion after four years of a more lenient policy under President Donald Trump, who has largely turned a blind eye to settlement construction.

Vaccine-Maker BioNTechA Small German Biotech Company Hopes to Make the Leap to Global Player

The Germany company BioNTech has achieved a breakthrough with its COVID-19 vaccine. Now it is faced with the task of becoming a global corporation, but it faces stiff competition from Big Pharma.

By Tim BartzMarkus BrauckMartin U. Müller und Thomas Schulz

A dozen bicycle stands are located in front of the entrance to BioNTech, but it's empty aside from a single mountain bike. It belongs to Uğur Şahin, the founder and CEO of the Mainz-based biotech firm, the co-developer of what is likely to be the first coronavirus vaccine in the Western world. He is also a recent addition to the list of the world's billionaires, but he doesn't own a car and rides his bike to the office.

Azerbaijan extends Armenian pullout deadline from Kalbajar after Putin’s mediation

Azerbaijan on Sunday agreed to extend the deadline for Armenians to withdraw from the Kalbajar district as part of a Russian-brokered peace accord to end weeks of fighting over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

"Azerbaijan agreed to prolong the deadline for the withdrawal from Kalbajar of Armenian armed forces and of illegal Armenian settlers until November 25," said President Ilham Aliyev's foreign policy adviser, Hikmet Hajiyev.

He said Aliyev had agreed on humanitarian grounds to grant an Armenian request for the delay following mediation by Russian President Vladimir Putin.


Dozens killed in ‘gruesome’ bus attack in western Ethiopia

No immediate indication assault in Benishangul-Gumuz region is linked to escalating conflict in northern Tigray region.

Gunmen have killed dozens of people in a “gruesome” attack on a bus carrying civilians in western Ethiopia, according to the country’s human rights body.

The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said in a statement on Sunday that “the estimated number of casualties, currently at 34, is likely to rise” from the attack which occurred on Saturday night in the Debate administrative area of the Benishangul-Gumuz region.

How police handled a DC stabbing is yet another sign of how law enforcement favors extremist group Proud Boys

Will Carless, USA TODAY

As protests over police brutality and racial justice broke out this summer, often resulting in harsh responses from law enforcement, police officers across the country have been accused of favoring a violent extremist group that took to the streets to oppose those demonstrators.

The latest example of a cozy relationship between law enforcement and the far-right Proud Boys happened in the nation's capital last week when the Metropolitan Police responded to a stabbing involving members of the Proud Boys and an associate.

Provocateur Bevelyn Beatty and the chairman of the Proud Boys, who was with her, told police they were both stabbed by people associated with Black Lives Matter in a street fight early the morning after the presidential election. The Metropolitan Police Department repeated their claim to media outlets, leading to headlines around the country claiming Black Lives Matter had attacked the Proud Boys.










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