International
WHO wants to rein in meningitis by 2030
AFP
The World Health Organization unveiled a plan Tuesday to bring meningitis under control by 2030, slashing the 250,000 annual deaths caused by the debilitating disease.
Launching the first-ever global strategy to tackle the illness, the WHO said it wanted to eliminate epidemics of bacterial meningitis — the most deadly form.
By doing so, it hopes to halve the number of cases and reduce deaths by 70 percent. It also wants to significantly reduce disability caused by the disease.
“Wherever it occurs, meningitis can be deadly and debilitating; it strikes quickly, has serious health, economic and social consequences, and causes devastating outbreaks,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
“It is time to tackle meningitis globally once and for all — by urgently expanding access to existing tools like vaccines, spearheading new research and innovation to prevent, detect and treat the various causes of the disease, and improve rehabilitation for those affected.”
Meningitis is a dangerous inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord, predominantly caused by infection with bacteria, and other pathogens including viruses and fungi.
Meningitis caused by bacterial infection tends to be the most serious form as it can spark fast-spreading epidemics.
It kills one in 10 of those infected — mostly children and young people.
It also leaves one in five with long-lasting disability, such as seizures, hearing and vision loss, neurological damage and cognitive impairment.
Over the last 10 years, epidemics have most commonly occurred in the so-called “Meningitis Belt”, spanning 26 countries across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Ethiopia.
Outbreaks can severely disrupt health systems and create vast expenditures for households and communities.
The WHO said there was an “urgent need for innovation, funding and research to develop more meningitis-preventive vaccines”.
Several vaccines protect against certain meningitis types, but many countries are yet to introduce them into their national immunisation programmes.
Research is also under way to develop vaccines for other causes of meningitis, such as Group B Strep bacteria.
The WHO’s Global Roadmap to Defeat Meningitis by 2030 called for high immunisation coverage and improved strategies to prevent outbreaks and respond to them.
It also called for efforts to strengthen early diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation.
The plan says meningitis will not be eliminated but it aims to get as close to that point as possible by reducing case numbers and then keeping them low.
International
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Judge Juan Merchan acquitted U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the case involving former porn actress Stormy Daniels.
“At this moment, I am issuing this verdict to cover all 34 charges,” Merchan stated. The judge also wished Trump good luck in his second term as president.
Trump will now become the first criminal president.
Merchan declined to impose any punishment. This decision strengthens Trump’s acquittal and clears the way for his return to the White House without the threat of prison or a fine.
“Never before has this court faced such a unique and remarkable set of circumstances,” Judge Merchan said.
International
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
Canada imposed sanctions on 14 high-ranking officials of the Venezuelan “regime” this Friday, including prominent members of the Military Counterintelligence Directorate (DGCIM), for their involvement in human rights violations in Venezuela.
Among those sanctioned are DGCIM prosecutors Dinorah Yoselin Bustamante Puerta and Farik Karin Salcedo Mora; the director of criminal investigations at the agency, Asdrubal José Brito Hernandez, as well as its former deputy director, Rafael Ramón Blanco Marrero.
The sanctions also target several members of the Bolivarian National Guard: its general commander, Elio Ramón Estrada Paredes; the commander of the capital region, Johan Alexander Hernández Lárez, and lieutenant colonel, Alexander Enrique Granko Arteaga.
Other individuals sanctioned include the director of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN), Alexis José Rodríguez Cabello, and his deputy director, Miguel Antonio Muñoz Palacios; Brigadier General of the Bolivarian National Police, Rubén Darío Santiago Servigna, and Domingo Antonio Hernández Lárez, commander of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces.
International
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said on Friday that she asked Edmundo González Urrutia, former candidate of the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), not to return to Venezuela to avoid putting himself at risk.
In a video message, Machado explained that the opposition evaluated the situation and concluded that González Urrutia would be in danger if he tried to enter Venezuela as he had planned.
González Urrutia, who claims to have won the July 28 elections with the support of more than 85% of the official voting records, had announced that he would return to Venezuela on January 10 to assume the presidency.
Earlier, Nicolás Maduro, who was declared the winner of those elections, took the oath of office for a third term.
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
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
Ecuador prison riot leaves at least 43 dead
-
International4 days agoMachado calls Venezuelans to the streets one day before the presidential investiture
-
International4 days agoThe US ambassador says goodbye to Mexico without regretting “anything” despite bilateral tension
-
International2 days agoTrump considers declaring National Economic Emergency to justify universal tariffs
-
International4 days agoArgentine Jorge Fernández Díaz wins the 81st Nadal Award with ‘El secreto de Marcial’
-
International4 days agoA military judge sends the Supreme court trial against colonels accused of coup in Brazil
-
International2 days agoThirteen cuban military members missing after explosion at arms warehouse
-
International2 days agoIsraeli forces recover hostage remains amid ceasefire talks with Hamas
-
International4 days agoSheinbaum defends Mexico’s presence in Maduro’s investiture
-
International4 days agoBathing with elephants, the popular Thai tourist activity criticized by animal rights activists
-
International4 days agoJustin Trudeau announces his resignation from the leadership of his party and as Prime Minister of Canada
-
International2 days agoAt least 13 civilians killed in russian missile attack on Zaporizhzhia
-
International4 days agoBoluarte promises to reduce citizen insecurity in Peru this year
-
International2 days agoAmerican citizen killed by mexican police officer in Ciudad Juárez shooting
-
International2 days agoVenezuelan opposition candidate Enrique Márquez detained ahead of Maduro’s inauguration
-
International1 day agoMaría Corina Machado kidnapped and forced to record videos before being released, says opposition
-
International1 day agoMaria Corina Machado calls for nationwide protests ahead of presidential inauguration
-
International4 days ago
Donald Trump insists that Canada should be part of the US after Justin Trudeau’s resignation
-
International4 days agoThe Pentagon reaches an agreement with LGTBIQ veterans discharged for their sexual orientation
-
International1 day agoGovernor Jenniffer González expresses solidarity with Venezuela’s struggling opposition
-
International1 day agoHundreds of venezuelan protesters demand ‘democratic change’ in Rome
-
International4 days agoCuba records just under 13,000 earthquakes in 2024, a record year of earthquakes
-
International4 days agoThe trial against Sarkozy opens for financing his campaign with Gaddafi money
-
International4 days agoThree Israelis killed in a Palestinian attack in the northern West Bank
-
International4 hours agoOAS chief calls for strengthening democracy in the region amid Venezuela’s crisis
-
International4 days agoNew Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip leave at least 48 dead in the last few hours
-
International4 days agoEmmanuel Macron accuses Elon Musk of supporting “a reactionary international” in a world in “disorder”
-
International4 days agoThe federal president of Austria commissions the far-right Herbert Kickl to form a government
-
International4 hours agoMaría Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
-
International4 days agoRussia announces the capture of the Ukrainian bastion of Kurákhove in the Donestsk region
-
International4 days agoNorth Korea launches an intermediate-range missile, its first test in two months
-
International4 hours agoCanada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
-
International4 hours agoJudge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case