As American B-52s return to West Asia, Ghadi Francis takes a look at why the United States is suddenly sending its massive strategic bombers back to the region.

The West Asia Post | Why are US B-52s returning to West Asia?

The Pentagon announced early Saturday that it sent the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier back into the Mideast.

Iran's revolutionary guard vows revenge over slain military scientist

United States President-elect Joe Biden has announced his cabinet posts. Several members of Barack Obama administration have made a comeback as Biden shows his inner circle to lead his new team.

Biden Cabinet: Antony Blinken to become Secretary of State

Over 1.047 million passengers were screened in the United States on Sunday - the highest number recorded by US Transportation Security Administration since mid-March.

Even though the number of air travellers remain significantly lower (60 per cent) than from the same day last year, Sunday marked the second time in three days that the number of passengers screened went over 1 million.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-sees-record-number-of-coronavirus-hospitalisations-for-12th-day-in-a-row-344837" hreflang="en">US sees record number of coronavirus hospitalisations for 12th day in a row</a>

On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had urged Americans to not travel during the Thanksgiving holiday in a bid to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Since, the airline passengers number has hit 1 million only thrice - first time on October 18 with 1.031 million.

The United States in the midst of the worst coronavirus wave the country has seen.

Even before November is over, the country has seen more COVID-19 cases than any other month during the pandemic: Between November 1 and 22, over 3 million new cases of coronavirus were recorded, as per data from Johns Hopkins University.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/unicef-to-ship-2-billion-doses-of-covid-19-vaccines-to-poor-countries-next-year-344855" hreflang="en">UNICEF to ship 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries next year</a>

In the ongoing month of November, US recorded the highest number of hospitalisations related to COVID-19. This has increased the stress on American healthcare, and has threatened to deprive others of care.

On Saturday alone, 83,227 people diagnosed with COVID-19 were hospitalised in the country, based on numbers by the Covid Tracking Project.

For 12th day in a row, the US has broken record for COVID-19 hospitalisations. So far, 12.2 million people in the US have contracted COVID-19, with 256,000 deaths across the country.

Over 1.047 million passengers were screened in the United States on Sunday - the highest number recorded by US Transportation Security Administration since mid-March.

Over 1.047 million passengers were screened in the United States on Sunday - the highest number recorded by US Transportation Security Administration since mid-March. Even though the number of air travellers remain significantly lower (60 per cent) than from the same day last year, Sunday marked the second time in three days that the number of passengers screened went over 1 million. Also read: US sees record number of coronavirus hospitalisations for 12th day in a row On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had urged Americans to not travel during the Thanksgiving holiday in a bid to stop the spread of COVID-19. Since, the airline passengers number has hit 1 million only thrice - first time on October 18 with 1.031 million. The United States in the midst of the worst coronavirus wave the country has seen. Even before November is over, the country has seen more COVID-19 cases than any other month during the pandemic: Between November 1 and 22, over 3 million new cases of coronavirus were recorded, as per data from Johns Hopkins University. Also read: UNICEF to ship 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries next year In the ongoing month of November, US recorded the highest number of hospitalisations related to COVID-19. This has increased the stress on American healthcare, and has threatened to deprive others of care. On Saturday alone, 83,227 people diagnosed with COVID-19 were hospitalised in the country, based on numbers by the Covid Tracking Project. For 12th day in a row, the US has broken record for COVID-19 hospitalisations. So far, 12.2 million people in the US have contracted COVID-19, with 256,000 deaths across the country.

United States: Sunday saw highest number of airline passenger screenings since March

The United States President-elect, Joe Biden, will announce the names of his first Cabinet picks, including the secretary of state, on Tuesday.

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden to unveil first Cabinet picks on Tuesday

At the end of a desolate road rimmed by prisons, deep within a complex bristling with cameras, U.S. technology is powering one of the most invasive parts of China’s surveillance state.

The computers inside the complex, known as the Urumqi Cloud Computing Center, are among the world’s most powerful. They can watch more surveillance footage in a day than one person could in a year. They look for faces and patterns of human behavior. They track cars. They monitor phones.

The Chinese government uses these computers to watch untold numbers of people in Xinjiang, a western region of China where Beijing has unleashed a campaign of surveillance and suppression in the name of combating terrorism.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/if-you-are-still-using-123456-as-your-password-change-it-research-344266">If you are still using '123456' as your password, change it: Research</a>

Chips made by Intel and Nvidia, U.S. semiconductor companies, have powered the complex since it opened in 2016. By 2019, at a time when reports said that Beijing was using advanced technology to imprison and track Xinjiang’s mostly Muslim minorities, new U.S.-made chips helped it join the list of the world’s fastest supercomputers. Both Intel and Nvidia say they were unaware of what they called misuse of their technology.

Powerful technology and its potential misuse cut to the heart of the decisions the Biden administration must face. The Trump administration banned the sale of advanced semiconductors and other technology to Chinese companies implicated in national security or humans rights issues. A crucial question for President-elect Joe Biden will be whether to firm up, loosen or rethink those restrictions.

Some figures in the technology industry argue that the ban went too far, cutting off valuable sales of U.S. products with plenty of harmless uses and spurring China to create its own advanced semiconductors. Indeed, China is spending billions of dollars to develop high-end chips.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/canada-facing-cyber-security-threat-from-china-russia-state-sponsored-programs-report-343994" hreflang="en">Canada facing cyber security threat from China, Russia state-sponsored programs: Report</a>

By contrast, critics of the use of U.S. technology in repressive systems say that buyers exploit workarounds and that the industry and officials should track sales and usage more closely.

Companies often point out that they have little say over where their products end up. The chips in the Urumqi complex, for example, were sold by Intel and Nvidia to Sugon, the Chinese company backing the center. Sugon is an important supplier to Chinese military and security forces, but it also makes computers for ordinary companies.

That argument is not good enough anymore, said Jason Matheny, founding director of Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology and a former U.S. intelligence official.

“Government and industry need to be more thoughtful now that technologies are advancing to a point where you could be doing real-time surveillance using a single supercomputer on millions of people, potentially,” he said.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/apple-to-reduce-its-app-store-fees-for-small-developers-343975" hreflang="en">Apple to reduce its App Store fees for small developers</a>

There is no evidence the sale of Nvidia or Intel chips, which predate the Trump order, broke any laws. Intel said it no longer sells semiconductors for supercomputers to Sugon. Still, both continue to sell chips to the Chinese firm.

The Urumqi complex’s existence and use of U.S. chips are no secret, and there was no shortage of clues that Beijing was using it for surveillance. Since 2015, when the complex began development, state media and Sugon had boasted of its ties to the police.

In 5-year-old marketing materials distributed in China, Nvidia promoted the Urumqi complex’s capabilities and boasted that the “high-capacity video surveillance application” had won customer satisfaction.

Nvidia said that the materials referred to older versions of its products and that video surveillance then was a normal part of the discussion around “smart cities,” an effort in China to use technology to solve urban issues like pollution, traffic and crime. A spokesperson for Nvidia said the company had no reason to believe its products would be used “for any improper purpose.”

The spokesperson added that Sugon “hasn’t been a significant Nvidia customer” since last year’s ban. He also said that Nvidia had not provided technical assistance for Sugon since then.

A spokesperson for Intel, which still sells Sugon lower-end chips, said it would restrict or stop business with any customer that it found had used its products to violate human rights.

Advances in technology have given authorities around the world substantial power to watch and sort people. In China, leaders have pushed technology to an even greater extreme. Artificial intelligence and genetic testing are used to screen people to see whether they are Uighurs, one of Xinjiang’s minority groups. Chinese companies and authorities claim their systems can detect religious extremism or opposition to the Communist Party.

The Urumqi Cloud Computing Center — also sometimes called the Xinjiang Supercomputing Center — broke onto the list of the world’s fastest computers in 2018, ranking No. 221. In November 2019, new chips helped push its computer to No. 135.

Two data centers run by Chinese security forces sit next door, a way to potentially cut down on lag time, according to experts. Also nearby are six prisons and reeducation centers.

When a New York Times reporter tried to visit the center in 2019, he was followed by plainclothes police officers. A guard turned him away.

The official Chinese media and Sugon’s previous statements depict the complex as a surveillance center. In August 2017, local officials said that the center would support a Chinese police surveillance project called Sharp Eyes and that it could search 100 million photos in a second. By 2018, according to company disclosures, its computers could connect to 10,000 video feeds and analyze 1,000 simultaneously, using artificial intelligence.

In Xinjiang, predictive policing often serves as shorthand for preemptive arrests aimed at behavior deemed disloyal to the party. That could include a show of Muslim piety, links to family living overseas, owning two phones or not owning a phone, according to Uighur testimony and official Chinese policy documents.

Technology helps sort vast amounts of data that humans cannot process, said Jack Poulson, a former Google engineer and founder of the advocacy group Tech Inquiry.

“When you have something approaching a surveillance state, your primary limitation is on your ability to identify events of interest within your feeds,” he said. “The way you scale up your surveillance is through machine learning and large-scale AI.”

The Urumqi complex went into development before reports of abuses in Xinjiang were widespread. By 2019, governments around the world were protesting China’s conduct in Xinjiang. That year, the Sugon computer appeared on the international supercomputing rankings, using Intel Xeon Gold 5118 processors and Nvidia Tesla V100 advanced artificial intelligence chips.

It is not clear how or whether Sugon will obtain chips powerful enough keep the Urumqi complex on that list. But lesser technology typically used to run harmless tasks can also be used for surveillance and suppression. Customers can also use resellers in other countries or chips made by U.S. companies overseas.

Last year, police in two Xinjiang counties, Yanqi and Qitai, purchased surveillance systems that ran on lower-level Intel chips, according to government procurement documents. The Kizilsu Kyrgyz autonomous prefecture public security bureau in April purchased a computing platform that used servers running less-powerful Intel chips, according to the documents, though the agency had been placed on a Trump administration blacklist last year for its involvement in surveillance.

China’s dependence on U.S. chips has, for now, helped the world push back, said Maya Wang, a China researcher with Human Rights Watch.

“I’m afraid in a few years’ time, Chinese companies and government will find their own way to develop chips and these capabilities,” Wang said. “Then there will be no way to get a handle on trying to stop these abuses.”

At the end of a desolate road rimmed by prisons, deep within a complex bristling with cameras, U.S. technology is powering one of the most invasive parts of China’s surveillance state.

At the end of a desolate road rimmed by prisons, deep within a complex bristling with cameras, U.S. technology is powering one of the most invasive parts of China’s surveillance state. The computers inside the complex, known as the Urumqi Cloud Computing Center, are among the world’s most powerful. They can watch more surveillance footage in a day than one person could in a year. They look for faces and patterns of human behavior. They track cars. They monitor phones. The Chinese government uses these computers to watch untold numbers of people in Xinjiang, a western region of China where Beijing has unleashed a campaign of surveillance and suppression in the name of combating terrorism. Also read| If you are still using '123456' as your password, change it: Research Chips made by Intel and Nvidia, U.S. semiconductor companies, have powered the complex since it opened in 2016. By 2019, at a time when reports said that Beijing was using advanced technology to imprison and track Xinjiang’s mostly Muslim minorities, new U.S.-made chips helped it join the list of the world’s fastest supercomputers. Both Intel and Nvidia say they were unaware of what they called misuse of their technology. Powerful technology and its potential misuse cut to the heart of the decisions the Biden administration must face. The Trump administration banned the sale of advanced semiconductors and other technology to Chinese companies implicated in national security or humans rights issues. A crucial question for President-elect Joe Biden will be whether to firm up, loosen or rethink those restrictions. Some figures in the technology industry argue that the ban went too far, cutting off valuable sales of U.S. products with plenty of harmless uses and spurring China to create its own advanced semiconductors. Indeed, China is spending billions of dollars to develop high-end chips. Also read| Canada facing cyber security threat from China, Russia state-sponsored programs: Report By contrast, critics of the use of U.S. technology in repressive systems say that buyers exploit workarounds and that the industry and officials should track sales and usage more closely. Companies often point out that they have little say over where their products end up. The chips in the Urumqi complex, for example, were sold by Intel and Nvidia to Sugon, the Chinese company backing the center. Sugon is an important supplier to Chinese military and security forces, but it also makes computers for ordinary companies. That argument is not good enough anymore, said Jason Matheny, founding director of Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology and a former U.S. intelligence official. “Government and industry need to be more thoughtful now that technologies are advancing to a point where you could be doing real-time surveillance using a single supercomputer on millions of people, potentially,” he said. Also read| Apple to reduce its App Store fees for small developers There is no evidence the sale of Nvidia or Intel chips, which predate the Trump order, broke any laws. Intel said it no longer sells semiconductors for supercomputers to Sugon. Still, both continue to sell chips to the Chinese firm. The Urumqi complex’s existence and use of U.S. chips are no secret, and there was no shortage of clues that Beijing was using it for surveillance. Since 2015, when the complex began development, state media and Sugon had boasted of its ties to the police. In 5-year-old marketing materials distributed in China, Nvidia promoted the Urumqi complex’s capabilities and boasted that the “high-capacity video surveillance application” had won customer satisfaction. Nvidia said that the materials referred to older versions of its products and that video surveillance then was a normal part of the discussion around “smart cities,” an effort in China to use technology to solve urban issues like pollution, traffic and crime. A spokesperson for Nvidia said the company had no reason to believe its products would be used “for any improper purpose.” The spokesperson added that Sugon “hasn’t been a significant Nvidia customer” since last year’s ban. He also said that Nvidia had not provided technical assistance for Sugon since then. A spokesperson for Intel, which still sells Sugon lower-end chips, said it would restrict or stop business with any customer that it found had used its products to violate human rights. Advances in technology have given authorities around the world substantial power to watch and sort people. In China, leaders have pushed technology to an even greater extreme. Artificial intelligence and genetic testing are used to screen people to see whether they are Uighurs, one of Xinjiang’s minority groups. Chinese companies and authorities claim their systems can detect religious extremism or opposition to the Communist Party. The Urumqi Cloud Computing Center — also sometimes called the Xinjiang Supercomputing Center — broke onto the list of the world’s fastest computers in 2018, ranking No. 221. In November 2019, new chips helped push its computer to No. 135. Two data centers run by Chinese security forces sit next door, a way to potentially cut down on lag time, according to experts. Also nearby are six prisons and reeducation centers. When a New York Times reporter tried to visit the center in 2019, he was followed by plainclothes police officers. A guard turned him away. The official Chinese media and Sugon’s previous statements depict the complex as a surveillance center. In August 2017, local officials said that the center would support a Chinese police surveillance project called Sharp Eyes and that it could search 100 million photos in a second. By 2018, according to company disclosures, its computers could connect to 10,000 video feeds and analyze 1,000 simultaneously, using artificial intelligence. In Xinjiang, predictive policing often serves as shorthand for preemptive arrests aimed at behavior deemed disloyal to the party. That could include a show of Muslim piety, links to family living overseas, owning two phones or not owning a phone, according to Uighur testimony and official Chinese policy documents. Technology helps sort vast amounts of data that humans cannot process, said Jack Poulson, a former Google engineer and founder of the advocacy group Tech Inquiry. “When you have something approaching a surveillance state, your primary limitation is on your ability to identify events of interest within your feeds,” he said. “The way you scale up your surveillance is through machine learning and large-scale AI.” The Urumqi complex went into development before reports of abuses in Xinjiang were widespread. By 2019, governments around the world were protesting China’s conduct in Xinjiang. That year, the Sugon computer appeared on the international supercomputing rankings, using Intel Xeon Gold 5118 processors and Nvidia Tesla V100 advanced artificial intelligence chips. It is not clear how or whether Sugon will obtain chips powerful enough keep the Urumqi complex on that list. But lesser technology typically used to run harmless tasks can also be used for surveillance and suppression. Customers can also use resellers in other countries or chips made by U.S. companies overseas. Last year, police in two Xinjiang counties, Yanqi and Qitai, purchased surveillance systems that ran on lower-level Intel chips, according to government procurement documents. The Kizilsu Kyrgyz autonomous prefecture public security bureau in April purchased a computing platform that used servers running less-powerful Intel chips, according to the documents, though the agency had been placed on a Trump administration blacklist last year for its involvement in surveillance. China’s dependence on U.S. chips has, for now, helped the world push back, said Maya Wang, a China researcher with Human Rights Watch. “I’m afraid in a few years’ time, Chinese companies and government will find their own way to develop chips and these capabilities,” Wang said. “Then there will be no way to get a handle on trying to stop these abuses.”

China’s surveillance state sucks up data. US tech is key to sorting it.

The United States in the midst of the worst coronavirus wave the country has seen.

Even before November is over, the country has seen more COVID-19 cases than any other month during the pandemic: Between November 1 and 22, over 3 million new cases of coronavirus were recorded, as per data from Johns Hopkins University.

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In 44 American states, the percentage of positive COVID-19 is way above the 5 per cent threshold. With this surge, hospitalisations and the pressure on healthcare have surged rapidly.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/coronavirus-us-continues-to-battle-huge-uptick-as-it-sees-over-2200-new-deaths-344219" hreflang="en">Coronavirus: US continues to battle huge uptick as it sees over 2,200 new deaths</a>

In the ongoing month of November, US recorded the highest number of hospitalisations related to COVID-19. This has increased the stress on American healthcare, and has threatened to deprive others of care.

On Saturday alone, 83,227 people diagnosed with COVID-19 were hospitalised in the country, based on numbers by the Covid Tracking Project.

For 12th day in a row, the US has broken record for COVID-19 hospitalisations.

According to CNN, 24 hospital chiefs have warned the American Hospital Association that they’re facing staffing problems.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/one-person-dying-every-17-seconds-in-europe-due-to-coronavirus-who-344188" hreflang="en">One person dying every 17 seconds in Europe due to coronavirus: WHO</a>

According to experts, the number is expected to climb further, as the holiday season sinks in the country, with Thanksgiving around the corner.

Dr. Megan Ranney said told CNN that even if 1 per cent of the 50 million people expected to travel for Thanksgiving transmit or contract the virus, it would amount to over 500,000 cases in the country.

So far, 12.2 million people in the US have contracted COVID-19, with 256,000 deaths across the country.

The United States in the midst of the worst coronavirus wave the country has seen. Even before November is over, the country has seen more COVID-19 cases than any other month during the pandemic: Between November 1 and 22, over 3 million new cases of coronavirus were recorded, as per data from Johns Hopkins University.

The United States in the midst of the worst coronavirus wave the country has seen. Even before November is over, the country has seen more COVID-19 cases than any other month during the pandemic: Between November 1 and 22, over 3 million new cases of coronavirus were recorded, as per data from Johns Hopkins University. In 44 American states, the percentage of positive COVID-19 is way above the 5 per cent threshold. With this surge, hospitalisations and the pressure on healthcare have surged rapidly. Also read: Coronavirus: US continues to battle huge uptick as it sees over 2,200 new deaths In the ongoing month of November, US recorded the highest number of hospitalisations related to COVID-19. This has increased the stress on American healthcare, and has threatened to deprive others of care. On Saturday alone, 83,227 people diagnosed with COVID-19 were hospitalised in the country, based on numbers by the Covid Tracking Project. For 12th day in a row, the US has broken record for COVID-19 hospitalisations. According to CNN, 24 hospital chiefs have warned the American Hospital Association that they’re facing staffing problems. Also read: One person dying every 17 seconds in Europe due to coronavirus: WHO According to experts, the number is expected to climb further, as the holiday season sinks in the country, with Thanksgiving around the corner. Dr. Megan Ranney said told CNN that even if 1 per cent of the 50 million people expected to travel for Thanksgiving transmit or contract the virus, it would amount to over 500,000 cases in the country. So far, 12.2 million people in the US have contracted COVID-19, with 256,000 deaths across the country.

US sees record number of coronavirus hospitalisations for 12th day in a row

A top official of the US government's vaccine development effort has said on Sunday that the United States hopes to begin a sweeping program of Covid vaccinations in early December. 
 
Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/nasal-spray-that-aims-to-fight-covid-19-other-respiratory-illness-gets-million-dollar-funding-344698">Nasal spray that aims to fight Covid-19, other respiratory illness gets million-dollar funding</a>

Some 70% of the US population of 330 million would need to be inoculated to achieve "herd" immunity from the virus, a goal the country could achieve by May, according to Dr Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific adviser for "Operation Warp Speed."

Slaoui said the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would likely grant approval in mid-December for distribution of the vaccine produced by Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech, launching the largest inoculation campaign in U.S. history. 
 
'Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to the immunization sites within 24 hours of approval' by the US Food and Drug Administration,' Moncef Slaoui said.

"So I expect maybe on Day Two of the approval, on the 11th or the 12th of December."

Citing reports, AFP said that FDA vaccine advisors will meet between December 8 and 10 to discuss approval of vaccines. Pfizer and Moderna have said that their vaccines against COVID-19 are at least 95 per cent effective.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech confirmed on Friday (December 20) that they had applied to US health regulators for emergency use authorisation (EUA) of its COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the first to do so in the US as the pandemic rages around the world. The companies have said that they are prepared to ship vaccines as soon as they get a go-ahead from the government.

The USA is the worst affected country in the world. It has had more than 12,000,000 coronavirus cases so far. The death tally is fast approaching 300 thousand. Nearly 5 million people are still affected due to coronavirus.

(With inputs from agencies)

A top official of the US government's vaccine development effort has said on Sunday that the United States hopes to begin a sweeping program of Covid vaccinations in early December.

A top official of the US government's vaccine development effort has said on Sunday that the United States hopes to begin a sweeping program of Covid vaccinations in early December. Also Read | Nasal spray that aims to fight Covid-19, other respiratory illness gets million-dollar funding Some 70% of the US population of 330 million would need to be inoculated to achieve "herd" immunity from the virus, a goal the country could achieve by May, according to Dr Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific adviser for "Operation Warp Speed." Slaoui said the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would likely grant approval in mid-December for distribution of the vaccine produced by Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech, launching the largest inoculation campaign in U.S. history. 'Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to the immunization sites within 24 hours of approval' by the US Food and Drug Administration,' Moncef Slaoui said. "So I expect maybe on Day Two of the approval, on the 11th or the 12th of December." Citing reports, AFP said that FDA vaccine advisors will meet between December 8 and 10 to discuss approval of vaccines. Pfizer and Moderna have said that their vaccines against COVID-19 are at least 95 per cent effective. Pfizer and its partner BioNTech confirmed on Friday (December 20) that they had applied to US health regulators for emergency use authorisation (EUA) of its COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the first to do so in the US as the pandemic rages around the world. The companies have said that they are prepared to ship vaccines as soon as they get a go-ahead from the government. The USA is the worst affected country in the world. It has had more than 12,000,000 coronavirus cases so far. The death tally is fast approaching 300 thousand. Nearly 5 million people are still affected due to coronavirus. (With inputs from agencies)

Covid vaccine could reach first Americans by December 11: Top health official

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met negotiators from the Afghan government & the Taliban in Doha. The meet shows progress in talks between the groups as Washington DC is speeding up its withdraw from the region.

Mike Pompeo in Qatar, meets Taliban negotiators

'Climate Guardian' Sentinel-6 satellite, jointly developed by Europe and the United States has been launched. The satellite will greatly help scientists keep track of the rise in global sea levels, one of the most daunting effects of climate change.

'Climate Guardian' Sentinel-6 satellite blasts off on ocean mission

Head of US government's coronavirus vaccine effort said on Sunday that the country hopes to begin a sweeping vaccination in early December. If such an effort takes place, it will mark first mass vaccination against coronavirus and will also be a decisive step against the global Covid-19 pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than a million people worldwide. The number of active cases worldwide is more than 15 million at present.

"Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to the immunization sites within 24 hours of approval" by the US Food and Drug Administration, Moncef Slaoui told CNN.&nbsp;

"So I expect maybe on Day Two of the approval, on the 11th or the 12th of December."

Citing reports, AFP said that FDA vaccine advisors will meet between December 8 and 10 to discuss approval of vaccines. Pfizer and Moderna have said that their vaccines against COVID-19 are at least 95 per cent effective.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/nasal-spray-that-aims-to-fight-covid-19-other-respiratory-illness-gets-million-dollar-funding-344698">Nasal spray that aims to fight Covid-19, other respiratory illness gets million-dollar funding</a>

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech confirmed on Friday (December 20) that they had applied to US health regulators for emergency use authorisation (EUA) of its COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the first to do so in the US as the pandemic rages around the world. The companies have said that they are prepared to ship vaccines as soon as they get a go-ahead from the government.

USA is the worst affected country in the world. It has had more than 12,000,000 coronavirus cases so far. The death tally is fast approaching 300 thousand. Nearly 5 million people are still affected due to coronavirus.

(With agency&nbsp;inputs)

Head of US government's coronavirus vaccine effort said on Sunday that the country hopes to begin a sweeping vaccination in early December. If such an effort takes place, it will mark first mass vaccination against coronavirus and will also be a decisive step against the global Covid-19 pandemic.

Head of US government's coronavirus vaccine effort said on Sunday that the country hopes to begin a sweeping vaccination in early December. If such an effort takes place, it will mark first mass vaccination against coronavirus and will also be a decisive step against the global Covid-19 pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than a million people worldwide. The number of active cases worldwide is more than 15 million at present. "Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to the immunization sites within 24 hours of approval" by the US Food and Drug Administration, Moncef Slaoui told CNN. "So I expect maybe on Day Two of the approval, on the 11th or the 12th of December." Citing reports, AFP said that FDA vaccine advisors will meet between December 8 and 10 to discuss approval of vaccines. Pfizer and Moderna have said that their vaccines against COVID-19 are at least 95 per cent effective. Also Read | Nasal spray that aims to fight Covid-19, other respiratory illness gets million-dollar funding Pfizer and its partner BioNTech confirmed on Friday (December 20) that they had applied to US health regulators for emergency use authorisation (EUA) of its COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the first to do so in the US as the pandemic rages around the world. The companies have said that they are prepared to ship vaccines as soon as they get a go-ahead from the government. USA is the worst affected country in the world. It has had more than 12,000,000 coronavirus cases so far. The death tally is fast approaching 300 thousand. Nearly 5 million people are still affected due to coronavirus. (With agency inputs)

Covid-19 vaccination may start in early December in US: Top official

The top US diplomat met separately with the Afghan government and Taliban negotiation teams in a luxury hotel in the Qatari capital

US Secretary of State Pompeo meets Taliban, Kabul negotiators in Qatar

The U.S. decision to allow Jonathan J. Pollard, the American convicted of spying for Israel in the 1980s, to complete his parole on Friday freed him to move to Israel and ended one of the most rancorous and long-running disputes between the two allies.

It also capped what has been an extraordinary four-year stretch in the countries’ relationship, during which President Donald Trump’s treatment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been nothing short of lavish.

Here are some of the most noteworthy gifts Netanyahu has received&nbsp;Israeli army strikes Hamas targets in Gaza after alleged rocket attack

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-secy-of-state-pompeo-meets-taliban-afghan-negotiators-in-qatar-344628" hreflang="en">US Secy of State Pompeo meets Taliban, Afghan negotiators in Qatar</a>

Jerusalem

After buoying Palestinian hopes with early talk of striking “the ultimate deal” to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Trump dashed them when he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. That fulfilled a campaign promise of great importance to evangelical Christians, and to many Jews.

Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its capital, but Palestinians consider East Jerusalem, which Israel seized in the 1967 war, the capital of their own future state.

U.S. policy before Trump had been that the status of Jerusalem should be resolved in peace talks. Congress had repeatedly urged the embassy move, but prior administrations kept it as a bargaining chip to induce Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians.

Also read|<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israeli-army-strikes-hamas-targets-in-gaza-after-alleged-rocket-attack-344608">&nbsp;Israeli army strikes Hamas targets in Gaza after alleged rocket attack</a>

There was more to come in Jerusalem, much of it provocative, as when the U.S. ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, swung a sledgehammer to open an archaeological tunnel under a Palestinian neighbourhood of East Jerusalem that was dug by a group leading efforts to bolster Israeli claims of sovereignty there.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo added a stroke of his own last month, changing passport rules to allow Americans born in Jerusalem to list “Israel,” rather than “Jerusalem,” as their place of birth. The long-standing policy had avoided identifying the city as part of Israel.

Pressuring the Palestinians

The Palestinian response to the embassy move was to boycott the White House. The White House answered with a series of punitive measures.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/dead-end-israel-says-lebanon-is-changing-stance-on-maritime-border-344376">'Dead end': Israel says Lebanon is changing stance on maritime border</a>

Seeking to compel the Palestinians to drop their demand for millions of their refugees to be able to return to what is now Israel — a demand Israel has always rejected — the Trump administration cut all funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which provides aid to Palestinian refugees across the Middle East.

It steadily cut off all other aid: $200 million in support for the Palestinian Authority through the U.S. Agency for International Development, about $60 million in aid for Palestinian security forces, $25 million for hospitals in East Jerusalem and $10 million for Israeli-Palestinian coexistence efforts.

Next, the State Department ordered the closing of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s diplomatic mission in Washington. A month later, it abolished the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem, which oversaw relations with the Palestinians, and folded those operations into the new embassy.

Aiding Israel’s West Bank Ambitions

Led by Friedman, a longtime supporter of the settlements, the administration has repeatedly cheered those who envision the entire West Bank permanently in Israel’s hands.

The ambassador publicly endorsed the idea of Israeli annexation of West Bank territory, which Netanyahu made the centerpiece of his reelection campaigns, and the Trump peace plan contemplated Israeli annexation of as much as 30% of the West Bank.

Annexation was eventually suspended in exchange for normalization of ties with the United Arab Emirates — with the Trump administration offering to sell the Emiratis coveted F-35 fighters as a deal sweetener. Similarly, the administration wooed Sudan by removing it from a list of states that sponsor terrorism.

But many other administration steps helped normalize Israel’s designs on land that the Palestinians want for a future state.

In late October, Friedman and Netanyahu signed agreements allowing U.S. government grants to go to Israeli research institutions in occupied territory. The only such institution is Ariel University, funded by Sheldon Adelson, the casino billionaire who is a backer of both Trump and Netanyahu.

On Thursday, Pompeo visited a Jewish settlement near Ramallah, becoming the first secretary of state to do so. He also issued new guidelines for imports from the West Bank, requiring that products made in areas under Israel’s full control be labeled products of Israel. The move could require dates or olives grown by Palestinian farmers to be labeled “Made in Israel” to reach American consumers.

Isolating Iran

After clashing with President Barack Obama over the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, Netanyahu found Trump an approving audience for his denunciations of the agreement as too lenient: Trump pulled out of the deal in March 2018.

Pompeo articulated a strategy of “maximum pressure” against Tehran through severe economic sanctions, and laid down a 12-point set of demands of its leaders that could have been drafted by Netanyahu.

Seeking to repulse Iran’s expansionist moves in the Middle East, Israel mounted a campaign of airstrikes against Iranian forces and their proxies in Syria, Lebanon and Iraq while, with the Trump administration’s encouragement, making common cause with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and other Gulf states against Iran.

Trump’s ordering of the killing in January of Gen. Qasem Soleimani eliminated one of Israel’s most feared adversaries. And an explosion in July that destroyed Iran’s center for advanced nuclear centrifuges, in Natanz, was described by some officials as a sign that a joint American-Israeli strategy was evolving into a campaign of short-of-war secret strikes against Iran.

International Backup

The Trump administration has repeatedly stood by Israel in its diplomatic fights, as when the United States withdrew from the U.N. Human Rights Council in protest of its frequent criticism of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.

The two countries also have assailed the International Criminal Court, of which neither is a member, for looking into potential crimes by U.S. forces in Afghanistan and by Israel in its treatment of the Palestinians. In September, Pompeo called the ICC a “thoroughly broken and corrupted institution” and announced sanctions on two of its officials.

And the Trump administration has increasingly equated anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism, both domestically and internationally. Building on that, Pompeo this week announced that the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel would be deemed anti-Semitic, and that its adherents would no longer be eligible for federal government support.

The U.S. decision to allow Jonathan J. Pollard, the American convicted of spying for Israel in the 1980s, to complete his parole on Friday freed him to move to Israel and ended one of the most rancorous and long-running disputes between the two allies.

The U.S. decision to allow Jonathan J. Pollard, the American convicted of spying for Israel in the 1980s, to complete his parole on Friday freed him to move to Israel and ended one of the most rancorous and long-running disputes between the two allies. It also capped what has been an extraordinary four-year stretch in the countries’ relationship, during which President Donald Trump’s treatment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been nothing short of lavish. Here are some of the most noteworthy gifts Netanyahu has received Israeli army strikes Hamas targets in Gaza after alleged rocket attack Also read| US Secy of State Pompeo meets Taliban, Afghan negotiators in Qatar Jerusalem After buoying Palestinian hopes with early talk of striking “the ultimate deal” to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Trump dashed them when he recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. That fulfilled a campaign promise of great importance to evangelical Christians, and to many Jews. Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its capital, but Palestinians consider East Jerusalem, which Israel seized in the 1967 war, the capital of their own future state. U.S. policy before Trump had been that the status of Jerusalem should be resolved in peace talks. Congress had repeatedly urged the embassy move, but prior administrations kept it as a bargaining chip to induce Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians. Also read| Israeli army strikes Hamas targets in Gaza after alleged rocket attack There was more to come in Jerusalem, much of it provocative, as when the U.S. ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, swung a sledgehammer to open an archaeological tunnel under a Palestinian neighbourhood of East Jerusalem that was dug by a group leading efforts to bolster Israeli claims of sovereignty there. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo added a stroke of his own last month, changing passport rules to allow Americans born in Jerusalem to list “Israel,” rather than “Jerusalem,” as their place of birth. The long-standing policy had avoided identifying the city as part of Israel. Pressuring the Palestinians The Palestinian response to the embassy move was to boycott the White House. The White House answered with a series of punitive measures. Also read| 'Dead end': Israel says Lebanon is changing stance on maritime border Seeking to compel the Palestinians to drop their demand for millions of their refugees to be able to return to what is now Israel — a demand Israel has always rejected — the Trump administration cut all funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which provides aid to Palestinian refugees across the Middle East. It steadily cut off all other aid: $200 million in support for the Palestinian Authority through the U.S. Agency for International Development, about $60 million in aid for Palestinian security forces, $25 million for hospitals in East Jerusalem and $10 million for Israeli-Palestinian coexistence efforts. Next, the State Department ordered the closing of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s diplomatic mission in Washington. A month later, it abolished the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem, which oversaw relations with the Palestinians, and folded those operations into the new embassy. Aiding Israel’s West Bank Ambitions Led by Friedman, a longtime supporter of the settlements, the administration has repeatedly cheered those who envision the entire West Bank permanently in Israel’s hands. The ambassador publicly endorsed the idea of Israeli annexation of West Bank territory, which Netanyahu made the centerpiece of his reelection campaigns, and the Trump peace plan contemplated Israeli annexation of as much as 30% of the West Bank. Annexation was eventually suspended in exchange for normalization of ties with the United Arab Emirates — with the Trump administration offering to sell the Emiratis coveted F-35 fighters as a deal sweetener. Similarly, the administration wooed Sudan by removing it from a list of states that sponsor terrorism. But many other administration steps helped normalize Israel’s designs on land that the Palestinians want for a future state. In late October, Friedman and Netanyahu signed agreements allowing U.S. government grants to go to Israeli research institutions in occupied territory. The only such institution is Ariel University, funded by Sheldon Adelson, the casino billionaire who is a backer of both Trump and Netanyahu. On Thursday, Pompeo visited a Jewish settlement near Ramallah, becoming the first secretary of state to do so. He also issued new guidelines for imports from the West Bank, requiring that products made in areas under Israel’s full control be labeled products of Israel. The move could require dates or olives grown by Palestinian farmers to be labeled “Made in Israel” to reach American consumers. Isolating Iran After clashing with President Barack Obama over the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, Netanyahu found Trump an approving audience for his denunciations of the agreement as too lenient: Trump pulled out of the deal in March 2018. Pompeo articulated a strategy of “maximum pressure” against Tehran through severe economic sanctions, and laid down a 12-point set of demands of its leaders that could have been drafted by Netanyahu. Seeking to repulse Iran’s expansionist moves in the Middle East, Israel mounted a campaign of airstrikes against Iranian forces and their proxies in Syria, Lebanon and Iraq while, with the Trump administration’s encouragement, making common cause with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and other Gulf states against Iran. Trump’s ordering of the killing in January of Gen. Qasem Soleimani eliminated one of Israel’s most feared adversaries. And an explosion in July that destroyed Iran’s center for advanced nuclear centrifuges, in Natanz, was described by some officials as a sign that a joint American-Israeli strategy was evolving into a campaign of short-of-war secret strikes against Iran. International Backup The Trump administration has repeatedly stood by Israel in its diplomatic fights, as when the United States withdrew from the U.N. Human Rights Council in protest of its frequent criticism of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians. The two countries also have assailed the International Criminal Court, of which neither is a member, for looking into potential crimes by U.S. forces in Afghanistan and by Israel in its treatment of the Palestinians. In September, Pompeo called the ICC a “thoroughly broken and corrupted institution” and announced sanctions on two of its officials. And the Trump administration has increasingly equated anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism, both domestically and internationally. Building on that, Pompeo this week announced that the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel would be deemed anti-Semitic, and that its adherents would no longer be eligible for federal government support.

For Netanyahu and Israel, Trump’s gifts kept on coming

The Indian Ocean is crucial to China's trade and energy. But it is India that enjoys a strategic advantage in these waters. What happens if India decides to stage a blockade? WION's Molly Gambhir tells you the answer.

Gravitas: Why China fears India

Despite widespread irregularities or lack of evidence of fraud, President Donald Trump's legal team used Thursday's press conference to go through the laundry list of far-fetched, well-dismissed claims on the 2020 election.

Delay in Trump-to Biden transition, Trump pushes legal challenges | WION-VoA Co-Production

Who did the minority groups vote for? | US Election 2020 | WION-VoA Co-Production

Navies of India, Australia, Japan and the US are participating in the Malabar exercise. China's state mouthpiece - Global times say the drills are an obvious step towards a 'mini-NATO'. WION's Molly Gambhir tells you how the QUAD alliance is evolving with the Malabar exercise.

Gravitas: What China thinks about the Malabar Exercise

Highlighting the "strong bipartisan support" in the US "to strengthen its strategic partnership with India", India's foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Thursday that India was looking to work with the new US Administration to "further strengthening and consolidating this multifaceted relationship for our mutual benefit and economic prosperity."

His comments come days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President-elect Joe Biden spoke with each other. The focus of their discussion was on Indo-Pacific, Covid pandemic, Climate Change among other things.

"As two mature, pluralistic and vibrant democracies with shared values, India and the US are natural partners of choice in forging a stable, peaceful and prosperous 21st century," Shringla pointed out,

"The India-US partnership is anchored in mutual trust and friendship, a shared commitment to democracy, converging strategic interests and the robust engagement of our citizens. I have personally witnessed the growing convergence in the strategic perspectives of India and the US over recent years," he said.

Foreign Secretary also spoke on commercial ties saying New Delhi believed that the US was a "natural partner for India" for its quest for building a resilient economy. &nbsp;&nbsp;

In October, 2+2 Dialogue took place between India and the US. Both sides have also been engaging in the Quad format and Malabar exercises. Foreign Ministers of the Quad countries (India, Australia, Japan and the US) had an in-person meeting in Tokyo earlier this year. New Delhi has also invited Australia for Malabar naval exercises that are underway now in the Indian Ocean.

Highlighting the "strong bipartisan support" in the US "to strengthen its strategic partnership with India", India's foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Thursday that India was looking to work with the new US Administration to "further strengthening and consolidating this multifaceted relationship for our mutual benefit and economic prosperity.

Highlighting the "strong bipartisan support" in the US "to strengthen its strategic partnership with India", India's foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Thursday that India was looking to work with the new US Administration to "further strengthening and consolidating this multifaceted relationship for our mutual benefit and economic prosperity." His comments come days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President-elect Joe Biden spoke with each other. The focus of their discussion was on Indo-Pacific, Covid pandemic, Climate Change among other things. "As two mature, pluralistic and vibrant democracies with shared values, India and the US are natural partners of choice in forging a stable, peaceful and prosperous 21st century," Shringla pointed out, "The India-US partnership is anchored in mutual trust and friendship, a shared commitment to democracy, converging strategic interests and the robust engagement of our citizens. I have personally witnessed the growing convergence in the strategic perspectives of India and the US over recent years," he said. Foreign Secretary also spoke on commercial ties saying New Delhi believed that the US was a "natural partner for India" for its quest for building a resilient economy. In October, 2+2 Dialogue took place between India and the US. Both sides have also been engaging in the Quad format and Malabar exercises. Foreign Ministers of the Quad countries (India, Australia, Japan and the US) had an in-person meeting in Tokyo earlier this year. New Delhi has also invited Australia for Malabar naval exercises that are underway now in the Indian Ocean.

Looking forward to work with new US administration: Foreign Secretary Shringla

Israel launched air strikes on Syria Wednesday, killing three troops and hitting Iranian targets in what the Israeli army called a retaliatory attack after it found explosive devices along its northern border.

An Israeli military statement said its fighter jets hit "military targets belonging to the Iranian Quds force and the Syrian Armed Forces," in overnight strikes.&nbsp;

The targets included "storage facilities, headquarters and military compounds" as well as "Syrian surface-to-air missile batteries", according to an army statement.

Syrian state news agency SANA said the strikes killed three of its soldiers and injured another.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/lead-scientist-behind-pfizers-covid-19-vaccine-ugur-sahin-says-life-will-not-return-to-normal-till-next-winter-343465">Lead scientist behind Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, Ugur Sahin, says life will not return to normal till next winter</a>

Israel has carried out hundreds of air and missile strikes on Syria since the civil war broke out in 2011, targeting Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah forces as well as government troops.

The Jewish state rarely acknowledges individual strikes, but has done so when responding to what it describes as aggression inside Israeli territory.

On Tuesday, Israel's military said it had discovered improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on its side of a border crossing point with Syria.

Israel and Syria, neighbours still technically at war, have a border along the Golan Heights, which the Jewish State has occupied since the 1967 Six Day War.

According to the Israeli military statement, the IEDs "were placed by a Syrian squad led by Iranian forces."

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/volunteers-face-severe-hangover-headache-and-pain-after-getting-pfizer-vaccine-shot-342518">Volunteers face 'severe hangover', headache and pain after getting Pfizer vaccine shot</a>

Iran has been a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime throughout the civil war that has killed more than 380,000 and erupted after the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

Israel's army said it "holds the Syrian regime responsible for all the actions perpetrated from its territory and will continue to operate as necessary against the Iranian entrenchment in Syria."

US visit

The air strikes came hours before US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is to land in Israel for talks including on Iran, in what is likely to be his last visit to the staunch American ally before President Donald Trump leaves office.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called Trump his country's strongest-ever ally in the White House, has heaped praised on the administration for its hardline approach towards Iran.

Trump's so-called "maximum pressure" campaign against the Islamic Republic has included sanctions and scrapping of the nuclear deal agreed between Tehran and world powers during Barack Obama's presidency.

Israeli experts have said Netanyahu is concerned that President-elect Joe Biden, Obama's former vice president, will seek to re-engage Iran diplomatically, possibly by restoring the nuclear deal. &nbsp;

Israel launched air strikes on Syria Wednesday, killing three troops and hitting Iranian targets in what the Israeli army called a retaliatory attack after it found explosive devices along its northern border.

Israel launched air strikes on Syria Wednesday, killing three troops and hitting Iranian targets in what the Israeli army called a retaliatory attack after it found explosive devices along its northern border. An Israeli military statement said its fighter jets hit "military targets belonging to the Iranian Quds force and the Syrian Armed Forces," in overnight strikes. The targets included "storage facilities, headquarters and military compounds" as well as "Syrian surface-to-air missile batteries", according to an army statement. Syrian state news agency SANA said the strikes killed three of its soldiers and injured another. Also read| Lead scientist behind Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, Ugur Sahin, says life will not return to normal till next winter Israel has carried out hundreds of air and missile strikes on Syria since the civil war broke out in 2011, targeting Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah forces as well as government troops. The Jewish state rarely acknowledges individual strikes, but has done so when responding to what it describes as aggression inside Israeli territory. On Tuesday, Israel's military said it had discovered improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on its side of a border crossing point with Syria. Israel and Syria, neighbours still technically at war, have a border along the Golan Heights, which the Jewish State has occupied since the 1967 Six Day War. According to the Israeli military statement, the IEDs "were placed by a Syrian squad led by Iranian forces." Also read: Volunteers face 'severe hangover', headache and pain after getting Pfizer vaccine shot Iran has been a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime throughout the civil war that has killed more than 380,000 and erupted after the brutal repression of anti-government protests. Israel's army said it "holds the Syrian regime responsible for all the actions perpetrated from its territory and will continue to operate as necessary against the Iranian entrenchment in Syria." US visit The air strikes came hours before US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is to land in Israel for talks including on Iran, in what is likely to be his last visit to the staunch American ally before President Donald Trump leaves office. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called Trump his country's strongest-ever ally in the White House, has heaped praised on the administration for its hardline approach towards Iran. Trump's so-called "maximum pressure" campaign against the Islamic Republic has included sanctions and scrapping of the nuclear deal agreed between Tehran and world powers during Barack Obama's presidency. Israeli experts have said Netanyahu is concerned that President-elect Joe Biden, Obama's former vice president, will seek to re-engage Iran diplomatically, possibly by restoring the nuclear deal.

Israel air strikes in Syria kill three troops, hit Iranian targets

Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller announced Tuesday that the US will withdraw thousands more US troops from Afghanistan and Iraq

U.S. troops to be withdrawn form Iraq and Afghanistan

Due to the economic fall out in pandemic many people in the US don't know where there next meal will come from. As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, Food Bank For New York City gave out turkeys & canned goods to hundreds of families. Many had never imagined needing handouts to survive.

Food bank for New York gives free Turkey for Thanksgiving

The coronavirus is a bigger risk to the U.S. economy than a prolonged dispute over the presidential election result, according to a Reuters poll that showed the near-term economic recovery was slowing more than previously thought.

US: Coronavirus bigger risk to US economy than election dispute

Hate crimes in the United States rose to their highest level in more than a decade last year, while more murders motivated by hate were recorded than ever before, the FBI said Monday.

The sharp rise in homicides driven by hatred — there were 51 last year, according to the FBI — was attributed in large part to the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, in August 2019. In that shooting, the authorities say a 21-year old gunman motivated by hatred toward Latinos stormed a Walmart and killed 23 people and injured many more.

The death toll in the El Paso attack more than doubled that of 2018’s deadliest hate-motivated crime, the mass shooting targeting Jews at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.

Overall, the FBI collected data on 7,314 criminal incidents motivated by bias toward race or ethnicity or gender identity in 2019. It was the third straight year the metric surpassed 7,100 incidents, and it was the highest number since the FBI reported 7,783 incidents in 2008.

Experts say the FBI data likely undercounts the number of hate crimes in the U.S., both because many victims fail to report incidents and local agencies are not required to report hate crime data to the FBI.

For example, last year only 2,172 agencies reported hate crime data to the FBI, out of a total of more than 15,000 law enforcement agencies around the country, according to the FBI’s report. (Notable omissions from the data in recent years have included the death of a protester in 2017 during a rally of white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia.)

“It’s important to note that, because of the nature of hate crime reporting, the FBI’s annual report vastly understates the real level of hate crimes in the country,” the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, said Monday.

The SPLC noted that the rise in hate crimes in recent years has come as the number of white supremacy groups has surged. According to data collected by the center, the number of white nationalist groups grew 55% between 2017 and 2019.

The upswing in hate crimes last year underscored the upward trend in bias-motivated crimes during the Trump era, and the harsh rhetoric against Latino immigrants was seen as motivating the gunman in the El Paso shooting.

“Politics plays a role,” said Brian Levin, a professor at California State University, San Bernardino and the director of the university’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism.

“The president’s rhetoric has been identified in a series of actual attacks,” Levin added, “but moreover the day-by-day ticks of FBI hate crimes shows there are increases after sustained and fervent remarks by the president that enter into an online feedback loop that also ends up in other discourses, both at the water cooler and on television.”

The overall increase was fueled by a rise in attacks, in particular, against Hispanics and Jews. The FBI reported 953 anti-Semitic hate crimes last year, a 14% increase from the previous year and the most since 2008, according to a report by CSUSB that analyzed the latest FBI report and was published Monday.

Hate crimes directed at Latinos rose almost 9%, to 527 incidents last year from 485 incidents in 2018. At the same time, hate crimes against Black people fell to the lowest portion of all hate crimes since such data started to be collected by the FBI, although Black people were still far overrepresented in the statistics, according to Levin’s report. Last year, hate crimes targeting Black people fell slightly, by less than 1%.

“Blacks are still the No. 1 target, at twice the level they represent in the American population,” the report said.

In examining preliminary data from 2020, Levin found overall declines in hate crimes, which he explained as a result of social distancing measures and business closures from the coronavirus pandemic, except in three cities: Los Angeles, Houston and San Antonio. And he has also found increases in bias crimes this year against two groups in particular, transgender people and Asian Americans; the latter, he said, was most likely affected by anti-Asian animus provoked by false claims about the pandemic.

Hate crimes in the United States rose to their highest level in more than a decade last year, while more murders motivated by hate were recorded than ever before, the FBI said Monday.

Hate crimes in the United States rose to their highest level in more than a decade last year, while more murders motivated by hate were recorded than ever before, the FBI said Monday. The sharp rise in homicides driven by hatred — there were 51 last year, according to the FBI — was attributed in large part to the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, in August 2019. In that shooting, the authorities say a 21-year old gunman motivated by hatred toward Latinos stormed a Walmart and killed 23 people and injured many more. The death toll in the El Paso attack more than doubled that of 2018’s deadliest hate-motivated crime, the mass shooting targeting Jews at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. Overall, the FBI collected data on 7,314 criminal incidents motivated by bias toward race or ethnicity or gender identity in 2019. It was the third straight year the metric surpassed 7,100 incidents, and it was the highest number since the FBI reported 7,783 incidents in 2008. Experts say the FBI data likely undercounts the number of hate crimes in the U.S., both because many victims fail to report incidents and local agencies are not required to report hate crime data to the FBI. For example, last year only 2,172 agencies reported hate crime data to the FBI, out of a total of more than 15,000 law enforcement agencies around the country, according to the FBI’s report. (Notable omissions from the data in recent years have included the death of a protester in 2017 during a rally of white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia.) “It’s important to note that, because of the nature of hate crime reporting, the FBI’s annual report vastly understates the real level of hate crimes in the country,” the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, said Monday. The SPLC noted that the rise in hate crimes in recent years has come as the number of white supremacy groups has surged. According to data collected by the center, the number of white nationalist groups grew 55% between 2017 and 2019. The upswing in hate crimes last year underscored the upward trend in bias-motivated crimes during the Trump era, and the harsh rhetoric against Latino immigrants was seen as motivating the gunman in the El Paso shooting. “Politics plays a role,” said Brian Levin, a professor at California State University, San Bernardino and the director of the university’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism. “The president’s rhetoric has been identified in a series of actual attacks,” Levin added, “but moreover the day-by-day ticks of FBI hate crimes shows there are increases after sustained and fervent remarks by the president that enter into an online feedback loop that also ends up in other discourses, both at the water cooler and on television.” The overall increase was fueled by a rise in attacks, in particular, against Hispanics and Jews. The FBI reported 953 anti-Semitic hate crimes last year, a 14% increase from the previous year and the most since 2008, according to a report by CSUSB that analyzed the latest FBI report and was published Monday. Hate crimes directed at Latinos rose almost 9%, to 527 incidents last year from 485 incidents in 2018. At the same time, hate crimes against Black people fell to the lowest portion of all hate crimes since such data started to be collected by the FBI, although Black people were still far overrepresented in the statistics, according to Levin’s report. Last year, hate crimes targeting Black people fell slightly, by less than 1%. “Blacks are still the No. 1 target, at twice the level they represent in the American population,” the report said. In examining preliminary data from 2020, Levin found overall declines in hate crimes, which he explained as a result of social distancing measures and business closures from the coronavirus pandemic, except in three cities: Los Angeles, Houston and San Antonio. And he has also found increases in bias crimes this year against two groups in particular, transgender people and Asian Americans; the latter, he said, was most likely affected by anti-Asian animus provoked by false claims about the pandemic.

Hate crimes in US rose to highest level in more than a decade in 2019

People who purchase a firearm during the pandemic are more likely to be suicidal than other firearm owners, according to a study by Rutgers University researchers.

The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that about 70 per cent of those who bought a firearm during the COVID-19 pandemic reported having suicidal thoughts throughout their lives, compared to 37 per cent of the rest of the community of gun owners.

"People who were motivated to purchase firearms during COVID-19 might have been driven by anxiety that leaves them vulnerable to suicidal ideation," said Michael Anestis, executive director of the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center and an associate professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health."While this does not guarantee an increase in suicide rates, it represents an unusually large surge in risk made more troubling by the fact that firearms purchased during COVID-19 may remain in homes beyond the pandemic."

According to Anestis, more than 2.5 million Americans became first-time gun owners during the first four months of 2020, with an estimated two million firearms purchased alone in March 2020 when the initial surge of the coronavirus pandemic began.

"Firearm owners are usually no more likely than non-firearm owners to experience suicidal thoughts. It is possible that a higher-risk group is driving the current firearm purchasing surge, introducing long-term suicide risk into the homes of individuals who otherwise may not have acquired firearms during a time of extended social isolation, economic uncertainty and general upheaval," Anestis said.In the Rutgers study, researchers surveyed 3,500 Americans, approximately one-third of whom were firearm owners, and asked about their reasons for purchasing a gun during the pandemic, their methods of gun storage and whether they had ever experienced thoughts of suicide.

The study looked at three groups: people who were existing firearm owners who did not purchase a firearm during the pandemic, people who purchased a firearm during the pandemic and non-firearm owners.The study found that, of those who bought a firearm during the pandemic, 70 per cent had experienced suicidal thoughts throughout their lives, 56 per cent had experienced suicidal thoughts during the previous year and 25 per cent had experienced suicidal thoughts during the previous month.

By contrast, individuals who did not buy guns during the pandemic were only 56 per cent, 24 per cent and 12 per cent respectively likely to have had suicidal thoughts during those time periods.

People who purchased a firearm during the pandemic also were found to be more likely to have storage habits that made the firearms less secure, such as switching between unloading their firearms and loading them before storage; using locking devices and then removing them, or switching between storing a firearm outside and inside the home."The increase in firearm purchases is concerning given that suicide is three times more likely in homes with firearms, and there is a hundred-fold increase in an individual`s suicide risk immediately following the purchase of a handgun," said Anestis. "And unsafe firearm storage increases that risk."&nbsp;

People who purchase a firearm during the pandemic are more likely to be suicidal than other firearm owners, according to a study by Rutgers University researchers.

People who purchase a firearm during the pandemic are more likely to be suicidal than other firearm owners, according to a study by Rutgers University researchers. The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that about 70 per cent of those who bought a firearm during the COVID-19 pandemic reported having suicidal thoughts throughout their lives, compared to 37 per cent of the rest of the community of gun owners. "People who were motivated to purchase firearms during COVID-19 might have been driven by anxiety that leaves them vulnerable to suicidal ideation," said Michael Anestis, executive director of the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center and an associate professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health."While this does not guarantee an increase in suicide rates, it represents an unusually large surge in risk made more troubling by the fact that firearms purchased during COVID-19 may remain in homes beyond the pandemic." According to Anestis, more than 2.5 million Americans became first-time gun owners during the first four months of 2020, with an estimated two million firearms purchased alone in March 2020 when the initial surge of the coronavirus pandemic began. "Firearm owners are usually no more likely than non-firearm owners to experience suicidal thoughts. It is possible that a higher-risk group is driving the current firearm purchasing surge, introducing long-term suicide risk into the homes of individuals who otherwise may not have acquired firearms during a time of extended social isolation, economic uncertainty and general upheaval," Anestis said.In the Rutgers study, researchers surveyed 3,500 Americans, approximately one-third of whom were firearm owners, and asked about their reasons for purchasing a gun during the pandemic, their methods of gun storage and whether they had ever experienced thoughts of suicide. The study looked at three groups: people who were existing firearm owners who did not purchase a firearm during the pandemic, people who purchased a firearm during the pandemic and non-firearm owners.The study found that, of those who bought a firearm during the pandemic, 70 per cent had experienced suicidal thoughts throughout their lives, 56 per cent had experienced suicidal thoughts during the previous year and 25 per cent had experienced suicidal thoughts during the previous month. By contrast, individuals who did not buy guns during the pandemic were only 56 per cent, 24 per cent and 12 per cent respectively likely to have had suicidal thoughts during those time periods. People who purchased a firearm during the pandemic also were found to be more likely to have storage habits that made the firearms less secure, such as switching between unloading their firearms and loading them before storage; using locking devices and then removing them, or switching between storing a firearm outside and inside the home."The increase in firearm purchases is concerning given that suicide is three times more likely in homes with firearms, and there is a hundred-fold increase in an individual`s suicide risk immediately following the purchase of a handgun," said Anestis. "And unsafe firearm storage increases that risk."

US study reveals people who purchased firearms during pandemic more likely to be suicidal

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