Daily Archives: July 18, 2021


Indonesian Doctors Dying of COVID-19 Amid Surge

COVID-19 is taking a devastating toll on medical professionals in Indonesia, where 114 doctors have died so far this month, more than double the number of doctors who died in June, according to a physicians’ network known as the Mitigation Team of the Indonesian Medical Association, or IDI.      The rising number of doctor deaths comes as the government notes that 95% of health workers have received COVID-19 vaccines.   On Sunday, the chief of the mitigation team, Mahesa Paranadipa Maikel, told the press in Jakarta that the doctor …


Biden Administration Struggles to Boost Vaccination Rates as COVID-19 Surges

With COVID-19 cases rising in the United States, some cities and counties are telling residents to wear masks indoors, even if they are vaccinated, while the Biden administration points to the prevalence of misinformation about vaccinations, especially on social media, as one of the drivers keeping people from getting shots. Michelle Quinn reports. Video editor: Marcus Harton …


US Surgeon General: ‘Pandemic Isn’t Over’ 

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said Sunday he is worried about the increasing number of new coronavirus cases in the country and laid part of the blame on social media companies for not doing enough to remove misinformation about the need to get vaccinated. “I’m concerned about what we’re seeing,” Murthy told “Fox News Sunday,” as about 29,000 new cases are being diagnosed every day in the United States, roughly the same level as in April 2020, when the pandemic first swept through the country. The highly contagious delta variant …


Britain’s Prime Minister, Finance Minister Exposed to COVID-19

Britain’s National Health Service has contacted Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his finance minister, Rishi Sunak, to let them know that they have been close to someone who tested positive for COVID-19.Downing Street said Sunday in a statement the men will participate in a daily contact testing pilot that will allow them to continue to work from Downing Street but self-isolate when not in their offices.The announcement came after U.K. Health Secretary Sajid Javid, who leads the country’s coronavirus response said Saturday he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is …


First Athletes Positive for COVID-19 in Tokyo Olympic Village

Two athletes have become the first to test positive for the coronavirus in the Tokyo Olympic Village, officials said on Sunday, just days before the pandemic-delayed Games open.The cases will heighten concerns over the Olympics, which are facing opposition in Japan over fears they will bring new cases to a country already battling a surge in infections.A daily tally of new cases revealed two athletes tested positive in the Village and one elsewhere. They come a day after an unidentified person, who was not a competitor, became the first case …


Slovenia’s Media Faced With Hostile Rhetoric, Threats, Attacks, Analysts Say

For the next six months Slovenia will preside over the European Union, a body dedicated to the highest democratic values. But critics say that when it comes to upholding press freedom ideals, Slovenia is not up to scratch. Two separate organizations, including the Council of Europe, released findings on what they say is a deteriorating situation for journalism. In a memorandum on freedom of expression and media freedom in Slovenia, the COE’s commissioner for human rights, Dunja Mijatovic, said she was concerned about steps by authorities “that risk undermining the …


Ethiopia Warns News Outlets Not to ‘Mischaracterize’ Tigray

Ethiopia’s media regulator is warning foreign news outlets that publishing specific references that it says mischaracterize the country’s war-torn northern Tigray region will be met with legal consequences. “In reviewing and monitoring the news reports, the Ethiopian Media Authority [EMA] has found that some foreign media are repeatedly characterizing [the Tigray People’s Liberation Front – TPLF] as a national army by calling it the Tigray Defense Force or TDF,” said an official statement issued on agency letterhead Friday that was sent to VOA. An earlier warning had been sent to …