International
EU prosecutor opens probe into Covid jabs procurement
AFP
The EU prosecutor’s office on Friday said it had opened an active investigation into the acquisition of Covid-19 vaccines in the European Union but gave no details.
The European Commission has served as the centralised pre-purchaser of coronavirus vaccines for the EU’s 27 members but those countries were then responsible for buying supplies from that centralised stock.
“This exceptional confirmation comes after the extremely high public interest. No further details will be made public at this stage,” the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) tweeted.
It was not clear what the possible target of the investigation was.
Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen is in hot water with the EU Ombudsman’s office for refusing to hand over mobile phone SMS messages she exchanged with the CEO of Pfizer, Albert Bourla, as her EU executive was arranging contracts.
After the commission said it did not identify any text messages relating to a formal request on the matter, and considered such messages too short-lived to warrant archiving, the Ombudsman, Emma O’Reilly, in July said “this constituted maladministration”.
The commission secured up to 4.2 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines to respond to the initial waves of the coronavirus and future ones.
Most of the doses are of the mRNA type, particularly from the tie-up between German company BioNTech and US giant Pfizer.
So far, 83 percent of the EU’s population is fully vaccinated.
Contacted by AFP for comment on the EPPO investigation, a commission spokesman said any questions should be referred to the EPPO, as it is an independent prosecutor.
The spokesman added: “With regard to the SMS topic, I would like to stress that the president (von der Leyen) did not negotiate the contracts.”
Some 10 eastern EU countries found they had a vaccine oversupply compared to the jabs uptake in their territories.
Some, such as Poland, refused to pay for their allotted supply ordered via the commission, prompting the EU to push for renegotiation of the contracts with the relevant companies.
At the height of the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Europe, the EU also imposed short-lived export controls on supplies of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 viral vector vaccine which ended up finding much lower uptake than the mRNA ones.
International
María Corina Machado: “Venezuela is closer than ever to regaining freedom”
Venezuelan opposition leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado declared on Friday that Venezuela is facing “the most decisive moment in its contemporary history” and that the country is “closer than ever to regaining freedom and democracy.”
Her remarks were delivered via video message during the 81st General Assembly of the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), held in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
Machado emphasized that the situation in Venezuela remains “extremely serious” due to censorship and repression imposed by Nicolás Maduro’s regime, particularly in a global context where “society is built on information.”
She warned that authoritarian governments manipulate public opinion through “psychological warfare” and disinformation, while shutting down media outlets and persecuting journalists.
“The only way to topple these regimes is through the constant, relentless, and unrestricted preaching of the truth. It is absolutely true that the truth will set us free,” she stated.
International
Millions to join “No Kings” march in U.S. amid Trump’s growing authoritarian backlash
Millions of Americans are set to take to the streets this Saturday in more than 2,500 cities across the United States for the second edition of the “No Kings” march, a massive protest organized by progressive groups and activists against what they describe as the authoritarian direction of President Donald Trump’s second administration.
The demonstration, expected to be the largest since Trump’s return to power, comes amid a federal government shutdown, further heightening political tensions in Washington.
From the White House, press secretary Abigail Jackson dismissed the event with a brief “Who cares?”, while senior Republican leaders labeled the march as an act of “hate against America.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson accused Democrats of blocking negotiations to reopen the government and claimed they were “unable to stand up to their raging base.” He also linked the protests to “supporters of Hamas and the Antifa terrorist group.”
President Donald Trump, in an interview with Fox News, blamed Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer for the legislative deadlock.
“He’s got nothing else left to do. Everyone’s hitting him hard,” Trump said.
The organizers — a coalition of Democratic leaders and more than 200 civil society and labor groups — argue that the Republican refusal to reopen the government is a clear symptom of the authoritarianism they seek to denounce.
The main rally will take place in Washington, D.C., which has been under heightened National Guard surveillance for weeks, officially to control rising crime. However, organizers contend the deployment is aimed at intimidating and silencing dissent.
Protesters have been urged to wear yellow, a reference to the 2019 pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
“With this color, we align ourselves with a historical context and remind the world that power must come from the people, not from crowns,” organizers stated on their website.
In addition to the capital, large marches are scheduled in New York, San Francisco, Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Kansas City, and Honolulu, as well as abroad in London, Paris, Frankfurt, and several Spanish cities — Madrid (Puerta del Sol), Barcelona (Plaça Sant Jaume), Seville (Plaza Nueva), and Málaga (Plaza de la Marina).
During the first edition, held in June, the movement gathered around five million people, a figure organizers expect to surpass this weekend.
International
Petro expresses concern over fatal shooting during mass protests in Lima
Colombian President Gustavo Petro voiced his “concern” on Thursday over recent events in Peru, following the death of a protester reportedly shot during a massive demonstration in Lima against the government and Congress.
“I must express my concern over the events in Peru. A young artist has been killed in citizens’ protests,” Petro wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
The Colombian leader also noted that in Peru, “a popularly elected president remains imprisoned without conviction,” referring to Pedro Castillo, who led the country from July 2021 to December 2022 until he was removed by Congress following a failed attempted coup.
“This is a blatant violation of the American Convention on Human Rights,” Petro stated, adding, “I hope Peru seeks social and political dialogue to legitimize its public institutions.”
On Wednesday, Peru experienced widespread protests in several cities, with the largest demonstration in Lima in recent years, driven by citizens’ concerns over corruption and public insecurity.
During the capital’s mobilization, the Ombudsman’s Office confirmed the death of Eduardo Ruiz, 32, and reported clashes that left over 100 injured, including 78 police officers and 24 protesters, as well as ten arrests.
The Attorney General’s Office, investigating Ruiz’s death “in the context of serious human rights violations,” confirmed that the protester was shot.
María Corina Machado: “Venezuela is closer than ever to regaining freedom”
Millions to join “No Kings” march in U.S. amid Trump’s growing authoritarian backlash
Environmental groups denounce Nicaragua’s mining deals as ‘ecocide’ in protected areas
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International4 days agoMexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
-
International4 days agoNew road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
-
International1 day agoMillions to join “No Kings” march in U.S. amid Trump’s growing authoritarian backlash
-
International1 day agoMaría Corina Machado: “Venezuela is closer than ever to regaining freedom”
-
International3 days agoPetro expresses concern over fatal shooting during mass protests in Lima
-
Central America2 days agoEnvironmental groups denounce Nicaragua’s mining deals as ‘ecocide’ in protected areas
-
Central America3 days agoNicaragua grants 2,500-hectare mining concession to chinese firm in protected region
-
International3 days agoPeru’s interim president José Jerí refuses to resign after protester’s death in Lima
-
Central America3 days agoPanama’s president accuses U.S. Embassy official of visa threats amid China tensions