Breakthrough
National carriers announce resumption of Qatar-Saudi air travel
The national carriers of Qatar and Saudi Arabia have announced the resumption of air travel between the two countries starting next week, just days after a deal was reached to end a years-long regional diplomatic dispute. A Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit on Tuesday declared an end to the bitter rift in which members Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain – along with Egypt – blockaded Qatar since June 2017. The group severed diplomatic, trade and travel ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism, an accusation Doha vehemently denied. Kuwait and the United States had been mediating for reconciliation. On the eve of the 41st GCC summit held in Saudi Arabia, the kingdom agreed to reopen its air, sea and land borders with Qatar – a major breakthrough in the Gulf crisi...
Marcus Rashford tames Wolves to send Manchester United into second
Marcus Rashford’s deflected strike deep into stoppage time moved Manchester United to within two points of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League with a 1-0 win over Wolves on Tuesday. United laboured for long spells against a youthful Wolves side, but got a huge slice of fortune in the 93rd minute when Rashford’s shot hit Romain Saiss to leave Rui Patricio helpless. Victory takes Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men up to second and continues an excellent run of 23 points from the last possible 27 to mount an unlikely title challenge after a slow start to the season. Despite enjoying one more day’s rest amid the packed festive schedule than their opponents, Solskjaer made six changes from the side that drew 2-2 at Leicester on Boxing Day. Edinson Cavani made just his second Premier League start...
Chioma Ubogagu scores first goal of the season for Real Madrid
Chioma Ubogagu scored her first goal in the 2020-21 Spanish Primera Iberdrola campaign as Real Madrid thrashed Espanyol 8-1 at Ciutat Esportiva Dani Jarque on Sunday. The 28-year-old had starred for the USA at youth level before playing for England at senior level thrice, albeit in friendlies, and still eligible to represent Nigeria due to the new Fifa eligibility rules. Having been handed her second start of the season, the England international put up an impressive display in front of goal as her side extend their winning streak in the Spanish top-flight. Las Blancas made a fantastic start to the encounter as Sofia Jakobsson’s perfect pass allowed Olga Carmona to score the opening goal for the visitors after just nine minutes. In the 33rd minute, Teresa Abelleira set up Ubogagu to double...
Interpol raises the alarm over fake coronavirus vaccines
The International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) has alerted Nigeria, South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States, and 190 other countries of threat from organised criminal groups during the upcoming COVID-19 vaccination campaigns, including fake vaccines and the theft of supplies. The alert came as the UK yesterday became the first country in the world to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for widespread use. The need for a vaccine has become more urgent globally and nationally with Nigeria recording over 67,000 COVID-19 infections and over 1,000 associated fatalities, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has so far identified 49 “candidate vaccines” at the stage of clinical trials in humans. Hopes are high ...
Coronavirus vaccine breakthrough raises hopes of rapid global rollout
A coronavirus vaccine developed by Britain’s University of Oxford and the pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca has shown successful results in early trials. If it is approved by regulators, the vaccine appears suitable for a fast rollout around the globe. Early analysis of trials involving 20,000 volunteers in Britain and Brazil show the vaccine is at least 62% effective after two doses. In volunteers given a different dosing regimen — a half dose, followed by a full dose — that figure rose to 90%. The average efficacy of the two dosing methods is 70%. None of those given the vaccine developed severe COVID-19 illness. Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said the recent successful trials of three different vaccines by Oxford-AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, represent a...
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