GENE

New Zealand’s Ardern labels anti-vaccine mandate protests ‘imported’ as crowds defy calls to leave

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WELLINGTON, Feb 14 (Reuters) – New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday she felt demonstrations against a COVID-19 vaccine mandate now entering their second week were an “imported” phenomenon, and nothing like anything she had seen before in the country . Hundreds of protesters continue to occupy lawns in front of the distinctive … Read more

Hong Kong leader says fifth COVID wave has ‘overwhelmed’ city’s capacity

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HONG KONG, Feb 14 (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s leader Carrie Lam said on Monday that the “onslaught” of coronavirus infections in the global financial hub has dealt a heavy blow and overwhelmed its capacity to deal with the epidemic as daily cases surge to record highs. Daily infections have multiplied 13 times over the past … Read more

Germans pin hopes on Novavax moving the needle among anti-vaxxers

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BERLIN, Feb 13 (Reuters) – Benedikt Richter, a 40-year-old teacher in the southwest German city of Kaiserslautern, long held out against getting vaccinated against COVID-19. He felt uneasy about the novelty of the mRNA technology used in two of the most commonly administered shots. It did not help that his sister-in-law was hospitalized with heart … Read more