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Nearly 10,000 died from COVID-19 last month, fueled by holiday gatherings and new variant, WHO says

GENEVA, January 11, 2024 (AP) — The head of the U.N. health agency said Wednesday holiday gatherings and the spread of the most prominent variant globally led to increased transmission of COVID-19 last month. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said nearly 10,000 deaths were reported in December, while hospital admissions during the month jumped 42% in nearly 50 countries — mostly in Europe and the Americas — that shared such trend information. “Although 10,000 deaths a month is far less than the peak of the pandemic, this level of preventable deaths is not acceptable,” the World Health Organization director-general told reporters from

India plans to lower budget gap by at least 50 bps, raise capital spending as much as 20% in FY25 – sources

NEW DELHI, Jan 11 (Reuters) – India is planning to lower its budget deficit by at least 50 basis points in 2024/25 from this year’s target of 5.9% of gross domestic product (GDP), while also looking to raise capital spending by as much as 20%, two government officials said. Shrinking the fiscal deficit and yet at the same time increasing capital spending will depend on an increase in revenues and efforts to curb subsidies, said Devendra Pant, an economist at India Ratings. Moves to cut welfare spending and subsidies would be unusual for a government facing a national election in

Ecuador president says country is at war with drug gangs

Quito, (Reuters): Ecuador President Daniel Noboa said on Wednesday his country was “at war” with drug gangs who are holding prison guards hostage, amid a dramatic surge in violence that saw gunmen briefly take over a TV live broadcast and explosions in multiple cities. Noboa on Tuesday named 22 gangs as terrorist organizations, making them official military targets. The president took power in November pledging to tackle a growing security problem caused by a rise in drug-trafficking gangs transporting cocaine through Ecuador. “We are at war and we cannot cede in the face of these terrorist groups,” Noboa told radio

A one-on-one debate between Haley and DeSantis could help decide the Republican alternative to Trump

Election 2024: Haley, DeSantis, and the GOP's Shifting Landscape

Waukee, Iowa (AP): After spending much of the Republican presidential primary flanked by lower-polling rivals, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis will be alone on the debate stage Wednesday for the first time as they wage an increasingly contentious push to become the primary alternative to Donald Trump. The stakes are high for both Haley, the former U.N. ambassador, and DeSantis, the Florida governor. They hope that a strong debate performance in Iowa will lift their campaigns in the final days before Monday’s caucuses, where a strong showing could provide much-needed momentum as the campaign for the GOP presidential nomination intensifies.

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