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WASHINGTON: Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious disease official, said on Sunday (Feb 28) he would take the newly approved Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, as he encouraged Americans to accept any of the three approved shots. "All three of them are really quite good, and people should take the one that's most available to them. If you go to a place and you have J&J, and that's the one that's available now, I would take it," Fauci said on NBC's "Meet the Press." READ: US authorises Johnson & Johnson's single-shot COVID-19 vaccine The US government authorised Johnson & Johnson's single-dose COVID-19 vaccine on Saturday, making it the third to be available in the country following ones from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. Both of those vaccines require two doses and need to be shipped frozen. The J&J vaccine can be shipped and stored at normal refrigerator temperatures. The J&J vaccine is expected to get final approval for widespread use on … [Read more...] about Fauci urges Americans to get any of the 3 COVID-19 vaccines available

LONDON: Gareth Bale scored twice to lift Tottenham to a 4-0 rout of Burnley on Sunday (Feb 28) in a morale-boosting victory for a Tottenham team which had lost five of its previous six Premier League games. Bale gave Tottenham the lead after just 68 seconds, knocking in a cross from Son Heung-min after defender James Tarkowski missed a chance to intercept. Bale played in Harry Kane to make it 2-0 in the 15th minute and Tottenham was cruising when Lucas Moura added a third goal off Sergio Reguilon's cross. Bale scored his second in the 55th when Son spotted the Welsh forward had been left completely alone by the Burnley defense on the right flank. Bale took one touch to control the ball and another to curl it with his left foot past goalkeeper Nick Pope. It was the sort of performance Tottenham fans had hoped for when Bale was signed back from Madrid on a season-long loan in September. Instead, they had to watch as Bale was hampered by injuries and Jose Mourinho's decision to … [Read more...] about Football: Bale scores 2 as Tottenham routs Burnley in Premier League

Video Player Close ADEN, Yemen, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Yemeni government and the Houthi rebel group swapped on Sunday 36 prisoners in the country's turbulent northeastern province of Marib, a military official told Xinhua. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the local military source said the Houthi rebel group released 18 prisoners linked to the government forces following a tribal mediation. Meanwhile, the government forces released 18 fighters of the Houthi group seized during previous battles, the source added. The exchange of the prisoners between the two warring rivals took place in southern Marib under the auspices of local tribal chiefs, he noted. Intense fighting erupted early in February as the Houthis tried to advance toward Marib, where dozens were killed or injured from both sides in the non-stop armed confrontations amid heavy airstrikes carried out by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition. Escalation of fighting between the Yemeni government and the Houthi … [Read more...] about Yemeni gov’t, Houthi rebels swap 36 prisoners after tribal mediation

Video Player Close BAGHDAD, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Ministry of Health reported 3,248 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, bringing the total nationwide number to 695,489. The new cases included 940 in the capital Baghdad, 662 in Basra, 393 in Najaf, 179 in Wasit, and 175 in Qadisiyah, the ministry said in a statement. It also reported 23 new deaths, raising the death toll from the infectious virus to 13,406, while the total recoveries in Iraq climbed by 2,933 to 635,931. A total of 6,846,243 tests have been carried out across the country since the outbreak of the disease in February 2020, with 35,525 done during the day. The ministry said in a separate statement that Health Minister Hassan al-Tamimi chaired a meeting with medical officials in the ministries of defense and interior, as well as the medical directorate of the Hashd Shaabi forces, to review the health restrictions aimed at preventing the spread of the new strain of coronavirus. The meeting stressed the … [Read more...] about Iraq reports 3,248 new COVID-19 cases, 695,489 in total

REUTERS: Bitcoin dropped 5.84per cent to US$43,418.02 on Sunday, losing US$2,691.96 from its previous close. Bitcoin, the world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, has fallen 25.6per cent from the year's high of US$58,354.14 on Feb. 21. Bitcoin's price soared this year as major firms including BNY Mellon, asset manager BlackRock Inc, and credit card giant Mastercard Inc backed cryptocurrencies, while others such as Tesla Inc Square Inc and MicroStrategy Inc invested in bitcoin. Ether, the coin linked to the ethereum blockchain network, dipped 9.59per cent to US$1,319.12 on Sunday, losing US$139.91 from its previous close. (Reporting by Sabahatjahan Contractor in Bengaluru; Editing by Daniel Wallis) … [Read more...] about Bitcoin falls 5.84per cent to US$43,418