Half a century after Ebola first emerged, its horror still dominates headlines – even as less spectacular viruses may pose a greater danger Reports of a new pandemic seem to appear every month, as journalists and international organizations sound the alarm about each new disease. These days, of course, everyone is worried about the new Ebola outbreak. The virus is spreading rapidly, and many people have died. This is indeed cause for concern, and it would be inhumane to believe otherwise. However, we have less reason to fear Ebola and other ‘sensational’ viruses than their alternatives. Read more Health officials issue urgent funding warning over Ebola outbreak Death from Africa Fifty years ago, a storekeeper at a cotton factory in the small town of Nzara in Sudan started feeling ill; his condition...
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Keir Starmer’s resignation exposes a deeper British crisis: voters no longer accept Ukraine posturing as a substitute for competence at home Britain has lost yet another prime minister, its fourth since 2022, after Keir Starmer, the latest occupant of 10 Downing Street, announced his resignation after less than two years in office. The drama has unfolded almost exactly as it did with Boris Johnson. Four years ago, Johnson’s own party colleagues removed him from office in the hope that his departure might save the Conservatives from electoral disaster. It didn’t but it merely hastened the collapse. Now Labour, with its own ratings falling sharply, is attempting the same trick. Unlike the Conservatives, however, it does at least have a plausible saviour waiting in the wings, the still relatively popular mayor of Manchester, Andy Burnham. Whether he can succeed where his predecessors failed is ano...
A California court has ordered a new sentence hearing for former film producer Harvey Weinstein amid a years-long legal battle A California appeals court has ordered a new sentencing hearing for former US film producer Harvey Weinstein while upholding his convictions for raping and sexually assaulting Russian-born model-actress Evgeniya Chernyshova. The original 16-year term was based “solely on an aggravating factor that no longer exists,” the court stated in a ruling on Friday. The disgraced Hollywood movie mogul, who was accused of sexual misconduct by dozens of women, was sentenced in 2023 for “forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by a foreign object and forcible rape” of the actress during a film festival in Los Angeles in 2013. During that sentencing hearing, Weinstein maintained his innocence, calling the Siberian-born actress’ testimony a “made-up story...
The bloc has said it will keep supporting refugees from the country, while also taking Kiev’s defense needs into account The European Commission has proposed excluding military-age Ukrainian men from temporary refugee protections granted by the EU, while maintaining the scheme for others who fled the conflict with Russia for another year. Kiev announced a general mobilization shortly after the escalation of the conflict in February 2022, barring almost all men considered eligible for service from leaving Ukraine. However, many of them still managed to escape the country; adult males currently account for around 27% of all Ukrainians benefiting from EU protections, with the rest being women and minors, according to the bloc’s data. In a statement on Friday, the European Commission said that it is asking member states to back the prolongation of the scheme, providing Ukrainian refugees with residence p...
The Bundeswehr has reached out to almost 300,000 potential recruits over the past five months, Die Zeit has reported Germany’s new military registration program has fallen disastrously short of the numbers expected by the Bundeswehr, Die Zeit has reported, citing data from the Defense Ministry. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said in April that the size of the German military should increase from the current 184,000 to 460,000 by 2035, including 260,000 active-duty troops and 200,000 reservists. In order to achieve the goal, the Bundeswehr launched a military registration program at the start of the year, asking all 18-year-old citizens – male and female – to respond to an online questionnaire to assess their readiness to serve. According to a Die Zeit article on Thursday, the Defense Ministry has reached out to 298,200 potential recruits over the past five months, but only 530 of them ...
France and Italy reportedly fear that the measure proposed by Brussels could become a blanket restriction on all Russian citizens France and Italy have pushed back against an EU proposal to ban Russian servicemen and veterans from entering the bloc, warning that the measure is legally unclear and difficult to enforce, Bloomberg has reported, citing diplomatic sources. Moscow has denounced the proposal as “paranoid,” while critics inside the EU reportedly fear it could morph into a broader entry ban on Russian citizens and affect more than 1.3 million people, including conscripts that did not participate in the conflict. The restriction is being discussed as part of the EU’s proposed 21st sanctions package over the Ukraine conflict. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said the bloc should bar Russians who have served in the military since February 2022, framing it as a ...