2021-01-17: News Headlines

Zero Hedge (2021-01-17). Health Experts Call for Suspension of Pfizer Vaccination Among Elderly After Norway Deaths. globalresearch.ca Update (1630ET): In what can only be described as a somewhat concerning turn of events, health experts from Wuhan, China, called on Norway and other countries to suspend the use of mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines produced by companies such as …

Peter Koenig (2021-01-17). The Sheep Syndrome. globalresearch.ca Today and during the last few days new "measures" — restrictions of freedom imposed by governments for reasons of "public health security", i. e. preventing the spread of covid infections — have been tightened throughout Europe. Literally, these treacherous governments …

Dr. Rudolf Hà§nsel (2021-01-17). Call for Action: The Necessary Struggle of the Personal Conscience Against "The New World Order" globalresearch.ca What could be more natural than to enjoy and draw strength from the wisdom of great European poets and thinkers such as Goethe, Schiller, Rolland or Camus? Are we not all — every single one! — urgently called upon to …

RT (2021-01-16). Argentina receives second batch of Russian Sputnik V vaccine against Covid-19 (VIDEO). rt.com A plane carrying 300,000 more doses of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus has landed in Argentina's capital Buenos Aires to allow the country to complete immunization of its frontline medics. | The refrigerated containers with the vaccine were delivered on Saturday from Moscow by a special flight of the Latin American country's flagship carrier, Aerolineas Argentinas. | "Those new doses represent the second component needed to conclude the vaccination after the first stage," Gines Gonzalez Garcia, Argentina's health minister, wrote on Twitter. | Llegaron al país 300.000 nuevas dosis de vacun…

RT (2021-01-16). If you want the jab, raise your Hans: German vaccine officials left with no choice but to guess people's ages from their names. rt.com German privacy law is rigorous. Forced to improvise, officials in one state sent letters to people with old-sounding names, in the hopes of inviting them to get vaccinated. | The German state of Lower Saxony began vaccinating citizens against Covid-19 at the end of December, with priority given to the elderly and vulnerable. People over the age of 80 have been sent invitations urging them to make a vaccination appointment, but the state's strict privacy laws have hampered this effort. | So, guessing based on the names' popularity, those named Hans, Klaus, or Ilse may have received invitations to get vaccinated…

RT (2021-01-16). Belarus risks angering US over order of advanced Russian S-400 missile system that has sparked worries for NATO warplanes. rt.com The Ministry of Defense in Belarus announced on Thursday that it is at an advanced stage of negotiations with Russia to obtain one of the world's most sophisticated anti-aircraft missile systems. | Igor Golub, the commander of the country's Air Force, told reporters that "we are continuing pre-contract work to equip our missile units that are currently using the S-300 systems with the new S-400," its more modern successor. He added that "we have already signed contracts [with Russia] for the supply of Mi-35 multifunctional attack helicopters and the second batch of Su-30SM fighter jets." | Commenting on recent…

Global Research News (2021-01-16). Selected Articles: Martin Luther King Day 2021. globalresearch.ca By January 15 is the day on which Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born, in Atlanta, Georgia, …

Prabhat Patnaik (2021-01-16). Engels on the Peasant War in Germany. mronline.org At a time when peasant masses in the country are engaged in a valiant struggle for the repeal of the Central government's three infamous laws, and have laid peaceful siege to Delhi, braving rains and bitter cold, it is worth recalling Friedrich Engels' study of the peasant war in Germany in 1525, that also celebrated …

Workers World Party (2021-01-16). PDF of January 14 issue. workers.org Download the 12-page PDF. Special Coverage: Resisting White Supremacy No fascist coup! Fight back with workers' power Georgia grassroots victory; Marcy on violence and the state; Threat of fascism remains; Black Lives Matter and 'democracy'; 'Fraudulent' elections; as imperialist ploy; Charlottesville's how-to lessons; Fascists, the FBI — and legislators; Capitol . . . |

WSWS (2021-01-16). Network Meeting of the Action Committees for Safe Education: Pupils, workers and students discuss perspectives for a European-wide general strike. wsws.org In introducing the meeting, Gregor Link of the International Youth and Students for Social Equality referred to the now almost 400,000 confirmed COVID deaths in the European Union.

WSWS (2021-01-16). French government rejects lockdown as COVID-19 deaths sweep Europe. wsws.org The official policy of imposing a 6 p.m. curfew while keeping schools and nonessential production open ensures that hundreds of thousands will keep dying across Europe.

teleSUR (2021-01-16). After User Feedback, WhatsApp Delays Changing Service Standards. telesurenglish.net "We are postponing the date when people will be asked to review and accept the new terms," Facebook's Whatsapp said in a blog post. | The company cancelled the February 8 deadline for users to accept the new rules, which include sharing their information with Facebook servers. | RELATED: | The change will be thoroughly reviewed and was delayed until May 15. The new terms were rejected by users outside of Europe who do not accept that a d…

sputniknews (2021-01-16). Federal Police Say Frankfurt Airport Partially Closed After Man Yelled 'Allahu Akbar'. sputniknews.com BERLIN (Sputnik) – The Frankfurt Airport was partially closed on Saturday after a 38-year-old Slovenian national yelled "I will kill you all, Allahu Akbar" toward law enforcement officers in Terminal 1, the German Federal Police said.

WSWS (2021-01-15). Fascist coup in Washington accelerates Spanish army's coup plotting. wsws.org Spain's conservative Popular Party, the main parliamentary opposition to the Socialist Party (PSOE)-Podemos government, is debating whether to endorse the campaign waged by army officers and the fascist Vox party for a coup d'état.

M.K. Bhadrakumar (2021-01-15). Germany draws another line in the sand for the U.S. mronline.org Maas underscored that Berlin "does not need to talk about European sovereignty if that is understood as us (Germany) doing everything in future the way Washington wants."

RT (2021-01-15). EC president von der Leyen dares European nations to call her bluff with announcement of (mandatory?) vaccine certificates. rt.com Europeans must carry certificates proving they've been vaccinated against Covid-19 to travel, EC president Ursula von der Leyen told Portuguese media – likely shocking Europeans who'd never heard of such a rule. | Von der Leyen sprung the idea of a "mutually recognized vaccination certificate" as a "medical requirement" for travel on Thursday in the course of praising a similar plan outlined to her in a letter from Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis. | "It is a medical requirement to have a certificate proving that you have been vaccinated," von der Leyen told Portuguese reporters. | While Mitsotakis' plan was not m…

RT (2021-01-15). 'Unacceptable': 6 EU countries urge bloc to address Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine delays, as Canada also flags supply issues. rt.com Six EU governments have written to the bloc's executive to call for action as deliveries of Covid-19 vaccines made by Pfizer/BioNTech are being delayed, while supply issues have also been reported in Canada. | The health ministers of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia called on the EU Commission to ensure the "stability and transparency of timely deliveries" of the Pfizer jab in a letter on Friday. | "This situation is unacceptable. Not only does it impact the planned vaccination schedules, it also decreases the credibility of the vaccination process," the letter reads, according to Reute…

Ragip Soylu (2021-01-15). 'Dear Tayyip': Erdogan and Macron exchanged letters to repair ties. middleeasteye.net 'Dear Tayyip': Erdogan and Macron exchanged letters to repair ties | Turkish president made the first move, with the two leaders seeking to meet in person soon | Fri, 01/15/2021 – 14: 01 | France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) meets Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka on 28 June 2019. (AFP) | The presidents of Turkey and France have…

Alex MacDonald (2021-01-15). Iraq: Bird flu blamed for deaths of tens of thousands of chickens. middleeasteye.net Iraq: Bird flu blamed for deaths of tens of thousands of chickens | Local authorities said a buffer zone was being imposed on the infected region | Fri, 01/15/2021 – 16: 04 | Iraqi vets check chickens that entered Iraq from Turkey at a market in the southern port city of Basra (AFP) | An outbreak of bird flu was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of chickens in central Iraq, officia…

Staff (2021-01-15). Neo-fascists found their voice in Trump. Where will the left's voice come from? therealnews.com With COVID-19 still raging and Biden's inauguration around the corner, Warnock and Ossoff win big in Georgia, Trumpist insurgents storm the U.S. Capitol, and Democrats and Republicans seethe with internal strife. What's next?

Medea Benjamin, Nicolas J. S. Davies, Marcy Winograd (2021-01-15). Will the Senate Confirm Coup Plotter Nuland? counterpunch.org Who is Victoria Nuland? Most Americans have never heard of her because the U.S. corporate media's foreign policy coverage is a wasteland. Most Americans have no idea that President-elect Biden's pick for Deputy Secretary of State for Political Affairs is stuck in the quicksand of 1950s U.S.-Russia Cold War politics and dreams of continued NATO

news.un (2021-01-15). COVID-19 committee stresses need for equitable vaccine access, more data sharing. news.un.org As COVID-19 cases spike in parts of Europe, Africa and the Americas, and new variants of the virus emerge in some countries, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday called for greater global collaboration in ending the pandemic.

WSWS (2021-01-15). Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa. wsws.org Around 55,000 Swedish care workers to begin industrial action today over pay, conditions and increased workload during pandemic; British gas workers plan further strikes to defend pay and conditions as Telecom workers in strike ballot.

WSWS (2021-01-15). How Germany's Left Party promotes herd immunity. wsws.org As was the case with the federal government in Berlin and every other state government in the pandemic, profits took precedence over human lives for the Left Party's only state premier, Bodo Ramelow in Thuringia.

teleSUR (2021-01-15). Paraguay Approves Emergency Use of Russian Vaccine. telesurenglish.net The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) announced on Friday that Paraguay's Ministry of Health authorized the Sputnik V vaccine's emergency use. | RELATED: | "Registration of Sputnik V vaccine in Paraguay proves the increasing interest of Latin American countries in a safe and effective Russian vaccine against coronavirus," said the CEO of Russia's sovereign wealth fund Kirill Dmitriev. | El anuncio de esta mañana del Fondo S…

teleSUR (2021-01-15). Argentina Awaits Its Second Batch of Sputnik V Vaccines. telesurenglish.net Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez Thursday sent a second plane to Russia to transport the second batch of Sputnik V vaccines which will be used in a nationwide vaccination campaign. | RELATED: | The flight AR-1060 departed from Ezeiza International airport at 21.14 local time in a direct route to Moscow where it will load 300,000 doses of the vaccine. | The plane is expected to land on Argentine soil on Saturday morni…

Laura Flanders (2021-01-15). We Should Learn From Georgia to Show Us the Way Forward. commondreams.org Over slow generations, they built a broad enough "we" and an effective bottom up force that formed not just a victorious voting block this year, but a caring community dedicated explicitly to dismantling white supremacy. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/abrams.jpg

Anoa Changa (2021-01-15). Georgia Organizers Won Because They Didn't Treat Elections as a Be-All, End-All. zcomm.org "We are undoing a history of voter suppression and injustice in Black and Brown communities. The changes we are seeing now didn't happen overnight, and we are not solving our challenges with just one vote."

sputniknews (2021-01-15). New Delhi Approves $6.5 Billion Deal to Buy 83 'Game Changer' Tejas Fighter Jets. sputniknews.com Even as it moves to buy locally-designed fighter jets, the Indian military has also bought dozens of French-made Rafale and Russian-made Su-30MKI fighters, as it retires a generation of older jets.

Peoples Dispatch (2021-01-15). Protests continue in Ireland following murder of George Nkencho by police. peoplesdispatch.org Over the past two weeks, protests have been held in Dublin following the shooting of George Nkencho, a 27-year-old Black man, by the police on the outskirts of the city…

Dr. Gary G. Kohls (2021-01-15). Martin Luther King's Warning of America's Spiritual Death. globalresearch.ca On January 15, 1929, Martin Luther King, Jr. is born in Atlanta, Georgia | Martin Luther King Jr.'s Riverside Church speech was titled "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence." It was delivered exactly one year before his April 4, …

David W. Mathisen (2021-01-15). Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Born this Day: Prophet Who Saw the "Far Deeper Malady" globalresearch.ca January 15 is the day on which Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born, in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1929. | He would go on to become one of the most powerful voices of all time against racism, oppression, violence, imperialism, and …

WSWS (2021-01-15). Germany records highest daily coronavirus death toll as fatalities double in just one month. wsws.org While the federal and state governments claim that a tougher lockdown came into force on January 11, all of industry, offices, most schools, childcare facilities and public transport are operating as usual.

Peoples Dispatch (2021-01-14). Progressive sections in Netherlands demand rise in minimum wage. peoplesdispatch.org The demand for setting the hourly minimum wage to EUR 14 Euros (USD 17.04) has been highlighted by the Socialist Party (SP), the Federation of Dutch Trade Unions (FNV) and trade union activist forum Voor 14, among others…

MEE and agencies (2021-01-14). Covid-19: Turkey says more than 250,000 health workers vaccinated so far. middleeasteye.net Covid-19: Turkey says more than 250,000 health workers vaccinated so far | President Recep Tayyip Erdogan receives first dose of Sinovac as Turkey begins vaccinating health workers | Thu, 01/14/2021 – 16: 58 | Turkish President Erdogan receives shot of Sinovac's CoronaVac coronavirus vaccine in Ankara (Reuters) | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced more than 250,000 health wor…

RT (2021-01-14). Twitter RESTORES account of Sputnik-V, Russia's coronavirus vaccine, restricted over suspicious log-in. rt.com Sputnik-V, the Russian-developed coronavirus vaccine, was back on Twitter after getting locked out of its official account on Thursday. When the official explanation finally came, it cited a suspicious log-in attempt from the US. | The account, @sputnikvaccine, showed up as "temporarily restricted" for a brief period on Thursday afternoon, due to "some unusual activity." | Users could click on a warning to see…

RT (2021-01-14). Far-Eastern Russian island Sakhalin to introduce mask exemption for those inoculated against Covid-19, regional head reveals. rt.com People inoculated against Covid-19 in the Far East's Sakhalin Region will be given a badge to show they are exempt from wearing a face mask. That's according to Valery Limarenko, acting governor of the island, located near Japan. | Sakhalin, one of Russia's wealthiest places per capita, is home to a substantial oil and gas industry. On Thursday, Limarenko revealed that the island will soon receive 9,000 doses of Russia's domestically produced Sputnik V vaccine and will get over 10,000 every month after that. | "Everyone who gets vaccinated will receive a special badge," he said. "[The badge] will give the wear…

MEE and agencies (2021-01-14). Covid-19: Turkey announces more than 250,000 health workers vaccinated so far. middleeasteye.net Covid-19: Turkey announces more than 250,000 health workers vaccinated so far | President Recep Tayyip Erdogan receives first dose of the Sinovac jab as Turkey begins vaccinating health workers | Thu, 01/14/2021 – 16: 58 | Turkish President Erdogan receives a shot of Sinovac's CoronaVac coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine in Ankara (Reuters) | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan anno…

RT (2021-01-14). UK bans all arrivals from Portugal and South America after discovery of Brazil Covid-19 variant. rt.com The UK will ban all travel from South America and Portugal from 4am GMT on Friday after the discovery of a new Covid-19 variant in Brazil, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on Thursday. | UK-bound travellers from Argentina, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela who do not live in the UK will be banned from entering the country. | "This measure does not apply to British and Irish Nationals and third country nationals with residence rights — but passengers returning from these destinations must self-isolate for 10 da…

RT (2021-01-14). 12hr Covid curfews announced for all of France for at least 15 days, PM says pressure on hospitals is 'high'. rt.com The entirety of France will be placed under a 6pm-6am curfew for at least 15 days from Saturday in a bid to ease the pressure of Covid-19 on the country's health system, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Thursday. | The 12-hour curfews are currently already in place for 25 of mainland France's 95 administrative areas — known as departements — but they will now be extended to the rest of the country, which is currently under an 8pm curfew. | "While the resumption of the epidemic was concentrated at the end of December in certain departments, viral circulation now concerns the entire country," th…

Dustin Noga (2021-01-14). China-EU investment deal bypasses U.S., denting Washington plan to isolate Beijing. peoplesworld.org On Dec. 30, 2020, the European Union and China concluded a new landmark investment deal called the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI). The pact marks a historic level of investment, cooperation, and intermingling of the 27-member bloc's economy with China's. The CAI will replace 26 separate investment agreements previously signed between China and individual member …

Scott Newman (2021-01-14). Financialization, Fascism and the Jan 6th Riots — with Paul Jay. theanalysis.news Paul Jay is the guest on The Barricade, a news outlet set up by a group of left-oriented activists from around Eastern Europe — Bulgaria, Poland, Slovakia, and Serbia. Paul was asked to provide background on the events in D.C. on Jan 6th.

teleSUR (2021-01-14). Sweden's COVID-19 Death Toll Tops 10,000. telesurenglish.net Sweden's COVID-19 death toll surpassed 10,000 on Thursday, with authorities warning that the fatalities would continue to rise. | Swedish Public Health Agency on Thursday registered another 351 deaths caused by COVID-19, taking the national death toll to 10,185. Meanwhile, 6,580 new confirmed cases brought the cumulative infections to 518,783. | "Unfortunately, we expect that the increase will continue as we have an extensive spread of infection in the country," Karin Tegmark Wisell, head of the department of microbiology at the Public Health Agency, said at a press conference. | Wisell revealed that southern…

WSWS (2021-01-14). Irish health system on brink of collapse as COVID-19 figures surge. wsws.org Ireland's health services are being rapidly overwhelmed by escalating rates of coronavirus infection.

WSWS (2021-01-14). Over 600,000 dead from coronavirus in Europe. wsws.org Scientists are warning that the pandemic is entering into an even more catastrophic stage than anything that has preceded it.

commondreams (2021-01-14). Environmental and Farmers Organizations in Italy Stop Government Attempt to Give Green Light to GMOs and NBTs. commondreams.org ______________________________…

Jon Skolnik (2021-01-14). QAnon congresswoman vows to impeach Joe Biden one day after his inauguration. salon.com Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene lashes out after ten House Republicans vote to impeach Trump…

teleSUR (2021-01-14). The UK Strain Has Been Detected in 25 European Countries. telesurenglish.net The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge on Thursday confirmed that the British strain of the new coronavirus has been detected in 25 European countries including Russia. | RELATED: | Although the possible consequences of this new strain are generating concern, he recalled that the new coronavirus "changes over time" just like any other virus. Therefore, European countries must…

teleSUR (2021-01-14). Bolivian Govt Reaches a Deal With Striking Transit Workers. telesurenglish.net Bolivia's finance Minister Marcelo Montenegro Thursday announced that an agreement on debt payments was reached with transport sector representatives to secure the continuity of public transportation services. | RELATED: | Besides establishing a six-month grace period without paymen…

Peoples Dispatch (2021-01-14). Hundreds take to the streets in Belgium demanding justice for Ibrahima Barrie. peoplesdispatch.org 23-year-old Ibrahima Barrie, a Black man, died following a heart attack he suffered while in police custody in Brussels. According to reports, more than five people were injured in the protests and close to 120 people were arrested…