COVID-19 World News
by Sriya Sadhu
VOL. 28 — published February 28, 2021 under COVID-19
- Protests in Spain
- After quiet curfews, Barcelona’s streets erupted in sometimes violent demonstrations that have spread to Madrid and other Spanish hubs. What began as a protest over the arrest in mid-February of Pablo Hasél, a Spanish rapper known as a provocateur, has become a collective fight by a generation that faces a lost future even after the pandemic ends. It hit at a time when unemployment in Spain for people under 25 was already high, at 30 percent. Now 40 percent of Spain’s youth are unemployed.
- After criticism, Israel vaccinates Palestinians with work permits
- On Sunday, the Israeli government approved a measure to vaccinate Palestinian laborers after facing criticism over the substandard inoculations it provided to Palestinians under its military occupation. Israeli medical teams will soon begin vaccinating Palestinians who have permits to work in Israel or in the West Bank settlements (approximately 110,000 people). The tens of thousands of Palestinians who work in Israel without official documents would not be eligible for inoculations.
- FDA approves Johnson & Johnson vaccine
- On Saturday, the FDA approved the Johnson & Johnson single-shot vaccine that could begin rollout and reach Americans early next week. Johnson & Johnson has pledged to provide the United States with 100 million doses by the end of June. It has an efficacy rate of 72%; However, Fauci warns against comparing this vaccine to Moderna and Pfizer– stating that “We have three highly effective vaccines. Period.”