Calls for drug companies to share vaccine formulas grow as global COVID crisis worsens
CBSN
As India registered nearly 400,000 new COVID-19 cases in a single day, the vaccination centers in its wealthiest city, Mumbai, were shuttered all weekend. There weren't any vaccine doses available to give.
While some of the world's wealthiest nations move closer to mass immunity, dozens of low- and middle-income countries have been left clamoring for scarce coronavirus vaccines and treatments as death tolls soar. Infectious disease experts have warned for months that allowing the virus to spread and mutate unchecked in any population poses a threat to people everywhere, because a variant could emerge with resistance to existing vaccines. That threat, along with the fundamental concern for human life, has fueled increasing calls to waive intellectual property rights around vaccines and treatments for COVID-19. The Biden administration said Wednesday that it supports such a waiver.Noumea — France's president held a flurry of meetings with local representatives in the restive Pacific territory of New Caledonia on Thursday, urging calm after deadly rioting, and vowing thousands of military reinforcements will stay in place to quell what he called an "unprecedented insurrection."
Kathmandu — Nepali climber Phunjo Lama on Thursday reached Mount Everest's summit in 14 hours and 31 minutes, smashing the record for the world's fastest ascent of the mountain by a woman. Climbers usually take days to reach the top of the 29,032-foot mountain, spending nights on its different camps to rest and acclimatize.
New Delhi — Indian justice officials have changed course amid outrage over the bail terms set for a teenager accused of killing two people while driving a Porsche at high speed while drunk and without a license. The 17-year-old son of a wealthy businessman had been ordered to write a 300-word essay and work with the local traffic police for 15 days to be granted bail — a decision that was made within 15 hours of his arrest.
Zurich — A woman jogger was killed by a naked man who was screaming and attacking people in a lakeside park in Switzerland, police said Wednesday. The attack happened Tuesday evening in Mannedorf on Lake Zurich, around 12 miles southeast of Switzerland's biggest city, the Zurich cantonal police said.
Norway, Ireland and Spain said Wednesday they are recognizing a Palestinian state in a historic move that drew condemnation from Israel and jubilation from the Palestinians. Israel immediately ordered back its ambassadors from Norway and Ireland and appeared ready to do the same with its ambassador to Spain.