FDA approves updated COVID-19 vaccines as summer wave continues

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — FDA approves updated COVID-19 vaccines as summer wave continues.

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  • Bersatu Youth chief demands Teresa Kok apologise for ‘superficial conclusion’ on halal certs as debate grows

    KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 7 — Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal wants Seputeh MP Teresa Kok to apologise to...

  • From missing exams to rejected from civil service: Why Malaysia-born stateless persons fear citizenship law change will forever trap them in limbo

    Several Malaysian-born stateless persons related how they have suffered from their status: from missing examinations...

  • Thailand's PM Paetongtarn vows to stimulate the economy "right away"

    Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Saturday her new government will seek to stimulate the economy "right away" and will continue with the policies of former premier Srettha Thavisin. She held a special cabinet meeting earlier in the day to prepare policies that will be delivered at a 2-day meeting of parliament on Thursday and Friday that will mark the formal beginning of her administration. Paetongtarn was elected prime minister by the country's House of Representatives last month following the shock removal of Srettha by a court for ethical violations.

  • Biden administration races to save billions in Ukraine aid as deadline looms

    U.S. President Joe Biden's administration is engaged in urgent discussions with Congress to allow it to use up $6 billion in military aid for Ukraine before a Sept. 30 deadline, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), a key component of a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine passed in April, allows the president to transfer defense articles and services from U.S. stocks in response to emergencies. PDA has been the primary mechanism the Biden administration has used to ship weapons to Ukraine.

  • Uncompetitive Conservative Party is bad for the UK, says Sir Tony Blair

    Sir Tony Blair said an uncompetitive Conservative Party is a “bad thing” for the UK.

  • Pennsylvania, Arizona and Texas benefit from US funding for Ukraine arms, Pentagon says

    Pennsylvania, Arizona and Texas are among U.S. states benefiting most from funding and investment to arm Ukraine in its fight against Russia, a breakdown of spending by the Pentagon showed on Friday. Pennsylvania, a swing state in the Nov. 5 presidential election, has received the most of any state with $2.52 billion in spending and investments to build arms and ammunition in support of Ukraine's effort to repel Russia's invasion, according to Pentagon documents released on Friday.

  • Protesters rally in France against Barnier’s appointment as prime minister

    Thousands of protesters took to the streets across France on Saturday, responding to a call from a far-left party leader who criticized as a “power grab” the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier. The protests directly challenged President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to bypass a prime minister from the far-left bloc following a deeply dividing —and divided — legislative election result in July. The left, particularly the France Unbowed party, views Barnier’s conservative background as rejecting the electorate’s will, further intensifying the EU’s second economy’s already charged political atmosphere.

  • France's new PM constructs cabinet under far right shadow

    France's new right-wing prime minister Friday sought to cobble together a government capable of mustering parliament backing, as critics lambasted the president for turning the far right into a kingmaker after snap polls.Michel Barnier, a 73-year-old former foreign minister who recently acted as the European Union's Brexit negotiator, is the oldest premier in the history of modern France. Consultations were going "very well" and were "full of energy", the veteran conservative politician told the press around midday before lunch with President Emmanuel Macron.The country's centrist leader named the right-winger after snap polls in July intended to distance the far right from power backfired and plunged the country into two months of political deadlock. Macron took the risk of dissolving parliament in June after the far right trounced his alliance in European elections. But the results saw Macron's centrist alliance lose its relative majority in the lower-house National Assembly. A left-wing alliance emerged as France's biggest political force, but without enough seats for an overall majority. Instead the anti-immigration far-right National Rally (RN) of Marine Le Pen became the single largest party in the lower chamber of the European Union's second largest economy.The RN has the most votes in any confidence motion, followed by Macron's centrist group.- Under far-right 'surveillance' -After rejecting a candidate suggested by the left-wing alliance, Macron chose Barnier to replace 35-year-old Gabriel Attal -- a centrist half his age who was the country's first openly gay premier.Le Pen, who leads RN lawmakers in parliament, has said her party would not be part of the new cabinet, and would wait for Barnier's first policy speech in front of parliament to decide whether or not to back him. The left in particular has reeled at Barnier's nomination and will likely seek to topple him in the lower house. Manuel Bompard, coordinator of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI), accused Macron of "betraying" the voters who in the second round of the elections of July 7 had voted tactically to prevent the far right coming to power. "It's a Macron-Le Pen government. It can only see the light of day because the National Rally has decided to give it its blessing," he told BFMTV, describing the three-time presidential candidate as a "kingmaker" for Macron.Lucie Castets, the 37-year-old economist who the left wanted to become premier, told RTL she was "very angry"."The president is placing himself in cohabitation with the National Rally," she said, vowing to table a motion of no confidence against Barnier. Le Monde daily described Barnier as a "prime minister under the surveillance of the RN". The left-leaning Liberation daily put a picture of Barnier on its front page with "approved by Marine Le Pen" as a rubber stamp. - Education and immigration -Barnier has pledged to take on his new task with "humility". He said education, security and "immigration control" were his priorities and said he would be unafraid to speak the truth on the country's "financial debt", but also promised "change". On Friday morning, Barnier met Attal, as leader of the president's centrist Together for the Republic (EPR) group in parliament, leaders of his own Republicans (LR) party to discuss the make-up of a new cabinet.The LR leader in the lower house, Laurent Wauquiez, told the press his party had conditioned any participation in the cabinet on Barnier's intended policies."We want to lift France out of the impasse," he said."But we will only do so with a programme that guarantees the preoccupations of French are addressed."burs-ah/sjw/rox

  • Labour’s winter fuel raid faces ‘fatal motion’ in House of Lords

    Labour’s winter fuel raid could be blocked by a motion in the House of Lords next week.

  • Zelensky appeals for weapons as Russia advances

    President Volodymyr Zelensky appealed on Friday to Ukraine's backers for additional weapons as Kyiv faces advancing Russian forces in the east and devastating strikes by Moscow.The gathering comes as Moscow's forces advance in the Donbas region, with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday declaring that capturing the eastern area was his "primary objective" in the conflict.

  • Biden charts course for final months of presidency

    President Biden is charting a course for his final 135 days in office, ramping up his public appearances as he seeks to cement his legacy and support Vice President Harris’s White House bid. After a lengthy summer vacation on beaches on opposite coasts, Biden hit the road for three separate trips upon returning to Washington,…

  • Russian former deputy minister 'stole' a 3-bedroom apartment in Moscow with false documents, investigators say

    Pavel Baryshev, who was deputy minister for natural resources, is accused of using forged documents to snag a $223,000 apartment, investigators said.

  • America’s push for an Israel-Hamas deal is a failure on repeat. But the US can’t walk away.

    For months, the United States has chased a mirage — a deal to free hostages in Gaza, to end the agony of Palestinian civilians there and to pause the fighting between Israel and Hamas.

  • Yvette Cooper to chair summit aimed at destroying small boats criminal gangs

    The Home Secretary will lead the meeting of senior ministers and figures from the National Crime Agency and intelligence services on Friday.

  • Labour refuses to rule out sending prisoners to Estonia as jail population hits record high - UK politics live

    Labour minister Angela Eagle said the Ministry of Justice is ‘considering anything’ to alleviate prison overcrowding

  • Italy PM states 'determined' support as Zelensky presses allies

    Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reaffirmed her strong support for Ukraine Saturday after talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky, as he visited allies to press for more weapons to fight Russia.In their talks Saturday, Meloni said she had also discussed with Zelensky a planned meeting in Italy next year on reconstructing Ukraine. 

  • Major roadblocks in Gaza ceasefire talks raise doubts over whether war can be ended before Biden leaves office

    The Biden administration has hit major roadblocks in the Gaza ceasefire negotiations after months of feverish work, raising doubts within the White House about whether the Israel-Hamas war can come to an end before the end of Joe Biden’s one-term presidency, officials told CNN.

  • House Republican unveil bill to avoid shutdown. Senate Democrats say they're wasting precious time

    House Republicans unveiled on Friday their legislation to avoid a partial government shutdown at the end of the month and fund the government into late March, when a new president and Congress would make the final decision on agency spending and priorities for fiscal year 2025. Republicans are also adding a hot-button immigration issue to the measure by requiring states to obtain proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when someone registers to vote. Inclusion of the citizenship requirement is a nonstarter in the Senate, complicating prospects for the spending bill's passage.

  • Watch: Biden speaks on investment, rural energy in Wisconsin

    President Biden delivered remarks Thursday announcing billions of dollars in federal investments for climate-friendly energy in rural America during a visit to the battleground state of Wisconsin. During the stop in Westby, Wis., Biden announced $7.3 billion in funding for rural electric cooperatives around the nation to build or purchase climate-friendly power. The announcement comes…

  • Nancy Shukri orders investigation against school bus driver for filming students, calling them ‘crush’, ‘beloved’

    KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 6 — Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri has instructed her offic...