Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera says he is saddened by statistics showing a recent spike in coronavirus infections in the country. In a Sunday radio address, he announced he was starting a 21-day fast to seek divine intervention into the pandemic that is on the rise again. Health experts say the …

Pope Francis says the decision to get the COVID vaccine is a matter of ethics.“It is an ethical choice because you are gambling with your health, with your life, but you are also gambling with the lives of others,” Francis said in an interview with Italian television station Canale 5.Vatican …

The initial round of mass testing for the coronavirus has been completed in Shijiazhuang, a city of 11 million that was locked down Wednesday after 39 new cases of the virus surfaced, the city’s mayor said Saturday.Mayor Ma Yujun said at a news conference that a second round of testing …

The Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reported early Saturday that there are nearly 90 million global COVID-19 cases.The United States has more cases than anyplace else with almost 22 million infections. India comes in second with about half the infections of the U.S. — nearly 10.5 million cases.The U.S. reported …

The desperately awaited vaccination drive against the coronavirus in the U.S. is running into resistance from an unlikely quarter: Surprising numbers of health care workers who have seen firsthand the death and misery inflicted by COVID-19 are refusing shots.It is happening in nursing homes and, to a lesser degree, in …

A nightly gathering of thousands of birds called a “murmuration” has captured the attention of entertainment-starved people in Northern California. Matt Dibble has a look. Camera: Matt Dibble                   Producer: Matt Dibble …

President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team said Friday the incoming administration will more quickly release coronavirus vaccines once it assumes power on January 20.Biden’s office said it would limit the Trump administration’s practice of increasing inventories of vaccine doses to guarantee that people get the booster shot several weeks after the …

A United Nations global survey reveals a world of unprecedented division, polarization and discord. The report, a year-long consultation to mark the U.N.’s 75th anniversary, surveyed more than 1.5 million people in 193 countries about their hopes, fears, and expectations for the future.The survey paints a picture of a generally …

2020 has tied 2016 as the hottest year on record, the European Union’s climate monitoring service said Friday, keeping Earth on a global warming fast track that could devastate large swathes of humanity.The six years since 2015 are the six warmest ever registered, as are 20 of the last 21, …

Health professionals and other scientists are concerned that the assault on the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday may also have been a COVID-19 superspreader event.The shouting mob that invaded the building was largely unmasked and not observing social distancing as they went through the halls of Congress and entered some lawmakers’ …

A ray of hope emerged Thursday for the Rainbow Nation, which has seen a massive spike in confirmed COVID-19 cases, as South Africa’s health minister announced a large shipment of vaccines is coming this month.      Zweli Mkhize said the country will receive one million vaccine doses by the …

The World Health Organization warns the European region is probably in the most acute phase of COVID-19 transmission and drastic measures must be taken to control the spread of the pandemic.   More than 26 million cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the European region, including over 580,000 deaths. …

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday that the city aims to vaccinate 10,000 police officers against the coronavirus by Sunday.At his daily briefing, De Blasio said police officers and jail guards were now eligible to receive vaccines under guidance provided by state officials. The guidelines released by …

New strains of the coronavirus causing the COVID-19 pandemic have evolved, raising alarms with public health experts. The viruses appear to be more infectious, making them harder to control. But experts say the new vaccines against them should still work. VOA’s Steve Baragona has more.  …

Malawi has introduced a mandatory quarantine on returnees from South Africa to control rising cases of COVID-19.  Thousands of Malawians have returned from South Africa in recent weeks, and officials fear they could import the new, more contagious form of coronavirus.Malawi has seen a rapid increase of COVID-19 cases since …

A South African virologist says existing COVID-19 vaccines may not be fully effective against the new coronavirus variant found in the country, but he expressed belief the vaccines can be “tweaked” to combat the variant.Scientists studying the variant of COVID-19 found in South Africa say that so far, they have …

India has not imposed a ban on export of vaccines for COVID-19, the federal government said amid a controversy that it had imposed restrictions on an Indian company expected to be on the frontlines in supplying vaccines to developing countries.      India, the world’s largest vaccine producer, is expected to …

More than two-thirds of the 15 million coronavirus vaccines shipped within the United States have so far gone unused.  As Mariama Diallo reports, some states are vowing to penalize hospitals that fail to dispense shots quickly enough. …

The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed disappointment Tuesday with the failure of Chinese officials to grant final permission to an international team of researchers to enter the country to investigate the origins of the coronavirus.At the agency’s regular COVID-19 briefing at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said …

French Health Minister Olivier Veran said Tuesday the nation was going to “amplify, accelerate and simplify” its COVID-19 vaccination program after coming under fire for the initial slow roll out of the program.In an interview with French radio, Veran said more than 2,000 doctors, nurses and other health care workers …

As millions of people await their turn to get a COVID-19 vaccine that could be months away, scammers online, in emails and on messaging apps are luring victims with claims they can deliver shots within days for as little as $150.   COVID-19 vaccine scams are on the rise, according …

In France, public frustration with the government is growing as the nation’s coronavirus immunization campaign gets off to a slow start. In response, officials say they will speed up and widen the vaccine rollout.As of Monday, only 2,500 people had received the vaccine against COVID-19 in France — most of them …

The amount of baked-in global warming, from carbon pollution already in the air, is enough to blow past internationally agreed upon goals to limit climate change, a new study finds. But it’s not game over because, while that amount of warming may be inevitable, it can be delayed for centuries if …

Britain’s prime minister announced a fresh round of lockdowns Monday, closing schools and nonessential shops, as the country begins vaccinating health care workers and the elderly.Prime Minister Boris Johnson said people must stay at home until at least mid-February, noting that British hospitals are under more strain now than they …

Drug maker Moderna says it plans to ramp up production of its COVID-19 vaccine by 100 million more doses than what it originally forecast.The Massachusetts-based company said Monday it would produce 600 million doses in 2021.So far, the company says it has supplied 18 million doses of a promised 200 …