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Gathered mainly from international media sources December 2020 - March 2021 |
For recent entries click "Invalid Item"  These are news/opinion items which caught my eye. Click on the link below: 31 Mar 2021 "Invalid Entry" 24 Mar 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 22 Mar 2021 "Invalid Entry" 21 Mar 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 19 Mar 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 17 Mar 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 26 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 25 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 24 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 22 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 21 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 19 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 18 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 16 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 15 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 14 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 9 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 8 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 4 Feb 2021 "Invalid Entry" 30 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 29 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 28 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 27 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 26 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 24 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 23 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 21 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 20 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 19 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 18 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 14 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 12 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 11 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 10 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 4 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 2 Jan 2021 "Invalid Entry" 29 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 27 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" 24 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" 23 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 22 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 20 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" 19 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" 18 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 17 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 16 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 15/12/20 "Invalid Entry" 13 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" 12 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" 11 Dec 2020 "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" "Invalid Entry" For earlier entries drill down the list 10 Dec 2020 - Covid: Genes hold clues to why some people get severely ill 10 Dec 2020 - Referendum for the state of Texas to secede from the U.S. ? 10 Dec 2020 - Covid-19: More single day dead than in 9/11 terror attack or on D-Day landing 10 Dec 2020 - Covid-19: France moves to night-time curfew from 15 December 10 Dec 2020 - Elon Musk has launched the latest prototype of his Starship vehicle from Texas. 9 Dec 2020 - Covid-19 - $600 direct payment to most Americans? 9 Dec 2020 - Hunter Biden under federal investigation 9 Dec 2020 - Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine data gets positive FDA review 9 Dec 2020 - Is BIG TECH censoring different ideas about COVID-19? 9 Dec 2020 - Clashes in Portland 9 Dec 2020 - UK is investigating two possible allergic reactions to Pfizer coronavirus shot 9 Dec 2020 - Open letter by the Prime Minister of Hungary to the European Union 9 Dec 2020 - VACCINE OPTIMISM AND PESSIMISM 9 Dec 2020 - UK EXIT FROM THE EU (Last supper?) 8 Dec 2020 - ROALD DAHL AND A WOKE APOLOGY |
| Some 1,900 years ago, Jewish refugees fleeing the Romans made their way to the Judean Desert. Among the belongings they carried with them were scrolls featuring the biblical books of Zechariah and Nahum. Two millennia later, fragments of those texts have reemerged, the Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced Tuesday. It is the first such discovery since the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in 1947 and the early Fifties. The inhospitable environment was considered a safe haven as the war between the Roman Empire and the Judean rebels led by Shimon Bar Kokhba raged around 130 CE. Jews found shelter in the caves and brought what they thought they needed for their new life. In recent decades, the caves have been targeted by looters eager to find artifacts to sell on the private market. For this reason, a few years ago, the IAA, in cooperation with the Civil Administration’s Archaeology Department, launched a rescue operation to survey all the caves in the area. The findings, which include not only the biblical fragments, but also dozens of artifacts dating back as early as 10,000 years ago, have been astounding. “More than 80 fragments of different sizes have been uncovered, some of them carrying text, some not,” Dr. Oren Ableman from the IAA Dead Sea Scroll Unit told The Jerusalem Post. “Based on the script, we dated them to the end of the first century BCE, which means that by the time it was brought to the cave, the scroll was already a century old.” The researchers ascertained that the artifacts matched other fragments uncovered several decades ago and preserved at the IAA laboratory. They belonged to a scroll featuring the biblical Book of Zechariah, written in Greek, except for God’s name, which was marked in paleo-Hebrew. “This was probably a way to show the importance of the name of God,” Ableman said. The excavation of the caves was conducted in difficult conditions Photo: Yoli Schwartz, Israel Antiquities AuthorityThe excavation of the caves was conducted in difficult conditions Photo: Yoli Schwartz, Israel Antiquities Authority The new discovery is particularly groundbreaking because one of the excerpts that was deciphered presents a version of Zechariah that was never encountered before, he said. Verses 16 and 17 of the eighth chapter of Zechariah read: “These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to one another, render true and perfect justice in your gates. And do not contrive evil against one another, and do not love perjury, because all those are things that I hate – declares the Lord.” In the fragment, the word “gates” is replaced by the word “streets.” “We had never seen this before,” Ableman said. It is not uncommon for texts appearing on the Dead Sea Scrolls to be different than the biblical text we know today. Scholars rely on these differences to understand more about how the canonized version of the Bible developed. “In this manuscript, we can see the effort of the translators to remain closer to the original Hebrew compared to what happened with the Septuagint,” Beatriz Riestra of the IAA Dead Sea Scrolls Unit said, referring to the earliest Greek translation of the Bible from the third century BCE. The practice of leaving God’s name in Hebrew was already found in other Dead Sea Scrolls fragments, as well as in several manuscripts from more recent periods from the Cairo genizah, a collection of hundreds of thousands of documents kept in the storeroom of a synagogue in the Egyptian capital, she said. Together with the manuscript, the archaeologists found several coins minted by the Jewish rebels under Bar Kokhba’s leadership, carrying the writing: “Year 1 for the redemption of Israel.” “Coins are an expression of sovereignty,” Donald T. Ariel, head of the IAA’s Coin Department, told the Post. “Minting coins meant to be free.” The bronze coins feature a palm tree and a vine leaf. The basket as found in Muraba‘at Cave. (Yoli Schwartz, Israel Antiquities Authority)The basket as found in Muraba‘at Cave. (Yoli Schwartz, Israel Antiquities Authority) “At the time, the palm tree had become the quintessential symbol of Judea. The Romans themselves put the symbol also on their Judea Capta coins,” Ariel said, referring to a series of coins minted by the empire to commemorate their victory in the region. The cave offered several other unique findings, including the skeleton of a child dating back some 6,000 years. “By moving two flat stones, we discovered a shallow pit intentionally dug beneath them, containing a skeleton of a child placed in a fetal position,” IAA prehistorian Ronit Lupu said in a press release. “It was obvious that whoever buried the child had wrapped him up and pushed the edges of the cloth beneath him, just as a parent covers his child in a blanket.” The skeleton underwent a process of natural mummification and is exceptionally well preserved. The cave, known as “the Cave of Horror” in the Judean Desert’s Nahal Hever, is some 80 meters below the cliff top and can be accessed only by clinging to ropes. Some 80 kilometers of caves have already been surveyed within the IAA operation, including very remote and inaccessible hollows. Drones and mountain-climbing equipment have been employed. About half of the area remains to be explored. Organic materials, including parchment, wood, textiles and human or animal bodies, usually do not last that long. However, the exceptionally dry climate of the Judean Desert preserved thousands of remains to this day. Another cave harbored another surprise: a prehistoric basket woven some 10,500 years ago, about 1,000 years before the invention of pottery. Experts believe the artifact, with a capacity of some 90 liters, is the earliest intact basket ever discovered. “The aim of this national initiative is to rescue these rare and important heritage assets from the robbers’ clutches,” IAA Director Israel Hasson said in a press release. “The newly discovered scroll fragments are a wake-up call to the state. Resources must be allocated for the completion of this historically important operation. We must ensure that we recover all the data that has not yet been discovered in the caves, before the robbers do. Some things are beyond value.” 6,000-year-old skeleton of a girl or a boy who was buried wrapped in cloth. (Emil Aladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority)6,000-year-old skeleton of a girl or a boy who was buried wrapped in cloth. (Emil Aladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority) Hananya Hizmi, head staff officer of the Civil Administration’s Archaeology Department in Judea and Samaria, said: “As early as the late 1940s, we became aware of the cultural heritage remains of the ancient population of the Land of Israel, with the first discoveries of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Now, in this national operation, which continues the work of previous projects, new finds and evidence have been discovered and unearthed that shed even more light on the different periods and cultures of the region.” “The finds attest to a rich, diverse and complex way of life, as well as to the harsh climatic conditions that prevailed in the region hundreds and thousands of years ago,” he said. |
| Shamima Begum: Supreme Court to rule on her fate The Supreme Court is to rule later whether the runaway schoolgirl Shamima Begum should be allowed back into the UK from Syria. The ruling comes six years after the then 15-year-old left with friends to join the Islamic State group. The government stripped her of British nationality so she cannot return. Five justices must decide whether the only fair way she can challenge that decision is to allow her back to take part in the case. Ms Begum's lawyers also argue she should automatically win her case to remain British, if she cannot receive a fair hearing. The 21-year-old is in a camp controlled by armed guards in northern Syria. She cannot speak to her lawyers or participate in a hearing by video. Major implications Two years ago, the then-Home Secretary Sajid Javid stripped Ms Begum of her citizenship, following the collapse of the IS regime. The Court of Appeal ruled last July Ms Begum had been denied a fair opportunity to challenge that decision because she could not make her case from the camp. The government then asked the Supreme Court to reconsider the Court of Appeal's ruling - so Friday's outcome has potentially major implications for Ms Begum's case and others like it. |
Killing of Jamal Khashoggi The US is set to release a report widely expected to implicate Saudi Arabia's crown prince in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. President Joe Biden has read the intelligence report and is due to speak to the Saudi king soon. Mr Biden wants to "recalibrate" ties with Saudi Arabia, which became closer under President Donald Trump. Khashoggi was brutally killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. The crown prince denied involvement. What happened to Jamal Khashoggi? Saudi authorities say his death was the result of a "rogue operation" by a team of agents sent to return him to the kingdom. Five individuals were given death sentences for the murder by a Saudi court but these were commuted to 20 years in prison last September. What do we know about the report? The report, which is expected to be released later on Thursday, will say that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved "and likely ordered" Khashoggi's killing, four US officials told Reuters news agency. They said the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) - the US overseas spy agency - was the main contributor to the report. The Saudi public prosecution and Prince Mohammed insist he did not have any knowledge of the murder but in 2019 he said he took "full responsibility as a leader in Saudi Arabia, especially since it was committed by individuals working for the Saudi government". NBC News reports that the intelligence assessment is not new and is based on work by the CIA which was widely reported back in 2018 - and later denied by then-President Donald Trump. According to that reported assessment, there was no "smoking gun" but US officials thought such an operation would have required the prince's approval. The Washington Post, which Khashoggi worked for, said at the time that the CIA assessment had been based partly on a phone call made by the crown prince's brother, Prince Khalid bin Salman, who was the then Saudi ambassador to the US. Prince Khalid, who is now deputy defence minister, allegedly called Khashoggi at the direction of his brother and gave him assurances that he would be safe to go to the consulate in Istanbul. Prince Khalid has denied any communication with the journalist. In 2019, UN special rapporteur Agnes Callamard accused the Saudi state of the "deliberate, premeditated execution" of Khashoggi and dismissed the Saudi trial as an "antithesis of justice". Why is this happening now? The publication of the report is part of Joe Biden's policy to realign ties with Saudi Arabia and take a much tougher stance than his predecessor Mr Trump on certain Saudi positions. The Trump administration had previously rejected a legal requirement to release a declassified version of the report, focusing instead on improved co-operation with the Saudis. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Wednesday that Mr Biden would communicate with King Salman, and not directly with the crown prince, who is his son and is considered the de facto ruler in Saudi Arabia. She said the president was due to speak to the 85-year-old king for the first time since taking office "soon", without giving a specific time for the call. Major reset under way in US-Saudi alliance The three campaigns the Saudi crown prince cannot win Five reasons why Saudi Arabia matters to the West "We've made clear from the beginning that we are going to recalibrate our relationship with Saudi Arabia," she told reporters. The new administration has already made some major policy changes in that regard, with President Biden ending US support for offensive operations by the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen, and freezing arms sales to the kingdom. |
Covid-19 and other similar strains of virus can survive on clothing and transmit to other surfaces for up to 72 hours, a study has found. Research carried out by De Montfort University (DMU) in Leicester looked at how coronavirus behaves on three fabrics commonly used in the healthcare industry. Scientists said polyester poses the highest risk for transmission, with infectious virus still present after three days that could transfer to other surfaces. The study, led by microbiologist Dr Katie Laird, virologist Dr Maitreyi Shivkumar and postdoctoral researcher Dr Lucy Owen, involved adding droplets of a model coronavirus called HCoV-OC43 – which has a very similar structure and survival pattern to that of Sars-CoV-2 – which causes Covid-19 – to polyester, polycotton and 100% cotton. Scientists said on 100% cotton the virus lasted for 24 hours, while on polycotton it only survived for six hours. Coronavirus can survive on surfaces including phone screens for four weeks, scientists claim The university said Dr Laird advised the government that all healthcare uniforms should be laundered in hospitals to commercial standards or by an industrial laundry. Dr Laird, head of the Infectious Disease Research Group at DMU, said: “When the pandemic first started there was very little understanding of how long coronavirus could survive on textiles. “Our findings show that three of the most commonly used textiles in healthcare pose a risk for transmission of the virus. “If nurses and healthcare workers take their uniforms home, they could be leaving traces of the virus on other surfaces.” She continued: “Once we had determined the survival rate of coronavirus on each of the textiles, we turned our attention to identifying the most reliable wash method for removing the virus. “While we can see from the research that washing these materials at a high temperature, even in a domestic washing machine, does remove the virus, it does not eliminate the risk of the contaminated clothing leaving traces of coronavirus on other surfaces in the home or car before they are washed. “We now know that the virus can survive for up to 72 hours on some textiles and that it can transfer to other surfaces too. “This research has reinforced my recommendation that all healthcare uniforms should be washed on site at hospitals or at an industrial laundry. “These wash methods are regulated and nurses and healthcare workers do not have to worry about potentially taking the virus home.” |
A Wiltshire woman has made medical history after falling pregnant while already pregnant. Rebecca Roberts, 39, is now the mother of twins Noah and Rosalie - who were born at the same time but conceived a month apart. The medical phenomenon, known as superfetation, is incredibly rare and occurs when a second egg is fertilised weeks after a first one. Experts believe there may only be 10 cases of it worldwide. Miss Roberts, who lives in Trowbridge, found out about the 'double pregnancy' when she went for her 12-week scan for baby Noah. "To find out I was having twins - I was really shocked, obviously because they originally said there was only one baby," she said. "But to find out we were having these special twins was remarkable. I googled it to try and learn a bit about it but there's nothing out there." Noah and Rosalie are considered twins, despite being conceived on different occasions. They were delivered early by caesarean at Bath's Royal United Hospital in September last year due to a problem with Rosalie's umbilical cord. Noah weighed 4lb 10oz, while his 'younger' sister was just 2lb 3oz. Rosalie had to stay in hospital longer than her twin, but both are now back at home in Wiltshire. |
There were almost 1,000 homeless deaths in the UK in 2020, according to a social justice group Almost 1,000 homeless deaths occurred last year across the UK, a social justice group has said. The Museum of Homelessness (MoH) said the figure rose by more than a third on the previous year, and called for more to be done to stop such “terrible loss of life”. The museum’s Dying Homeless Project recorded 976 deaths across the four nations in 2020. It said it had verified 693 homeless deaths in England and Wales, 176 in Scotland and 107 in Northern Ireland. The total figure was up 37% on the 710 UK deaths reported in the 2019 study, it said. The Government’s “Everyone In” scheme saw thousands of homeless people rapidly brought to safety at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Campaigners said figures included the deaths of people living on the streets, sofa surfing, and in emergency or temporary accommodation as a “significant achievement” of the scheme. But it added that the efforts could not make up for pre-pandemic cuts to services, coupled with the disruption caused by the outbreak. It said of the cases for which they had confirmed details of the cause of death, 36% were related to drug and alcohol use and 15% were suicide. Jess Turtle, co-founder of MoH, said: “The Government touts ‘Everyone In’ as a runaway success. “But it didn’t stop a staggering increase in the number of people dying while homeless – despite the best efforts of our colleagues around the country who worked 24 hours a day on emergency response.” She said their findings show that the pandemic affected a system “already cut to the bone from 10 years of austerity” and called on the Government to “stop repackaging old funding commitments as new support and do more to stop this terrible loss of life”. The project uses information from coroners’ enquiries, media coverage, family testimony and freedom of information requests – in their latest research they gathered data through more than 300 requests – to verify details of each case. The figures included the deaths of people who were living on the streets, sofa surfing, and in emergency or temporary accommodation for people who are homeless. |
| Iran to stop 'snap' nuclear checks, IAEA confirms The head of the UN nuclear watchdog says Iran has agreed to extend UN inspectors' access to its nuclear sites for three months. But the hastily brokered agreement will give IAEA officials less access and end their right to make snap inspections. Iran is changing its access policy from Tuesday because the US has not lifted the sanctions imposed since Donald Trump abandoned the 2015 nuclear deal. The crisis over Iran's nuclear programme has been on the international agenda for almost 20 years. Iran says its atomic programme is for peaceful purposes, while the US and others suspect Iran is secretly seeking the capability to develop nuclear weapons. What do Iran's latest actions mean? A law coming into force on Tuesday by Iranian MPs requires the government to stop allowing the inspection at short-notice of declared or undeclared nuclear sites by experts from the global nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). "This law exists. This law is going to be applied, which means that the Additional Protocol, much to my regret, is going to be suspended," said IAEA chief Rafael Grossi, after a weekend of talks in Tehran. Mr Grossi said that the temporary agreement covering the next three months had "to a certain extent mitigated" the change in Iranian policy. "But of course for a stable, sustainable situation there will have to be a political negotiation that is not up to me," he added. |
Large globs of tar have washed up on much of Israel's Mediterranean coastline in what officials are calling one of the worst environmental disasters to hit the country. Thousands of volunteers and soldiers are helping to clear the pollutant which is damaging wildlife. Israel is trying to track the source of the pollution, which is thought to have come from a ship spilling oil. The general population has been told to avoid the beaches. Dozens of tonnes of tar have been found on many stretches of Israel's 190km (120 miles) Mediterranean coastline and there are fears it will take months, or even years to clean up. NGOs have reported turtles and birds covered in oil. The pollution is "one of the most serious ecological disasters" in Israel's history, according to the Nature and Parks Authority. Why do oil spills keep happening? The source is thought to be an oil spill produced during a storm on 11 February from a ship some 50km (30 miles) off the coast. Satellite imagery and wave patterns are being used to trace the ship responsible. Environmental Protection Minister Gila Gamliel said nine ships were being investigated. The Israeli government is considering legal action to win compensation which could run to millions of dollars. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been inspecting the damage at one of the beaches. Last Thursday, a 17m-long (55ft) fin whale was found dead on a beach in southern Israel, and the Nature and Parks Authority said an autopsy had found an oil-based product - a black liquid - in its system. However, an official said it was too early to say whether the liquid came from the same oil spill. |
| British surgeons in children’s heart transplant breakthrough The Royal Papworth Hospital has been able to make hearts start beating again. NHS doctors have reportedly become the first in the world to complete heart transplants in children using organs brought back to life by a ground-breaking machine. Donated hearts have historically come from people who are brain-dead but whose hearts are still beating, which limits the scope for the number of transplants possible. But the Sunday Times says surgeons from the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire have been able to make hearts start beating again after they had stopped, and successfully transplanted them into children. The doctors have used a heart-in-a-box machine called the Organ Care System to bring the hearts back to life once removed from the donor. The machine replicates the conditions of the human body. Once a defibrillation pulse is used to start the hearts beating again, they are kept warm and have 1.5 litres of the donor’s blood pumped through them in a cycle, and receive nutrients. Doctors are also able to regulate the heart rate by remote control if necessary. The hearts have then been flown to London for transplanting at Great Ormond Street Hospital, the newspaper reported. The technique had been tried in adults before, but has now saved the lives of six British children aged between 12 and 16 since last February, all of whom had life-threatening conditions. On average, children have to wait two-and-a-half times longer than adults for hearts to become available. The breakthrough is expected to allow a substantial expansion in the number of donor hearts available, reduce post-operation complications, speed recoveries, increase transplant survival rates and save hundreds of lives, the paper says. The first patient to benefit from the procedure was Anna Hadley, now 16, from Worcester, who had waited almost two years for her heart transplant. “I just feel normal again. There’s nothing I cannot do now,” she told the paper. Dr John Forsythe, medical director for organ donation and transplantation at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “This new technique will save lives both here and around the world. “It means people can donate their hearts where it wouldn’t have been possible in the past, giving life to patients on the waiting list.” |
| Earlier this week, the Gaza Strip received its first doses of the vaccine after Israel approved the transfer through its border. The shipment included 2,000 doses of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine which will be used on patients who have had organ transplants and those with kidney failure, an official told Reuters news agency. It comes as the Palestinian Health Ministry struck a deal with Israel's Health Ministry to vaccinate 100,000 Palestinians who work in the country. Perhaps the road to peace between Israel and Palestinian Territories is via Israel taking responsibility and administration of healthcare of all Palestinians. |
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