Other Security News
COVID-19 Pandemic News

Other Security News

• At least 10 hacking groups using Microsoft software flaw: Report Press TV 11 Mar 2021 -- At least 10 hacking groups are using flaws in Microsoft Corp.'s mail server software to break in to targets around the globe, cybersecurity company ESET has warned.
• US Designates 2 African Groups as Foreign Terrorist Organizations VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- Islamic State-linked groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique are the newest entries on a U.S. list of foreign terrorist groups, amid what experts say is a growing trend of violent extremism in Africa.

COVID-19 Pandemic News

• 'Some light at the end of the tunnel' as pandemic turns one - Guterres UN News 11 Mar 2021 -- After 12 months where the world has faced "a tsunami of suffering", the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines represents "some light at the end of the tunnel" said the UN chief on Thursday, marking the anniversary of the World Health Organization (WHO) issuing its pandemic alert.
• UN launches 'Only Together' campaign to support global vaccine equity call UN News 11 Mar 2021 -- The United Nations on Thursday launched a new global campaign, Only Together, aiming to advance fair and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines worldwide.
• World Marks One-Year Anniversary of WHO's Official Declaration of COVID-19 Pandemic VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- One year after the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic, a new study has found that a variant of the virus first detected in Britain is deadlier than other previous versions.
• COVID-19 Hit Wealthy Countries Especially Hard; Nursing Homes Are One Reason VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- As vaccinations ramp up and cases decline, U.S. officials relaxed recommendations for one of the groups hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic: elderly people in nursing homes.

United States

• Remarks by President Biden on the Anniversary of the COVID-19 Shutdown The White House 11 Mar 2021
• Biden Commemorates US Coronavirus Death Toll, Charts Path Forward VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- President Joe Biden marked one year since the coronavirus swept into the United States with his first prime-time television address Thursday night, commemorating the loss of more than a half million lives while offering hope for better days ahead.
• DOD Teams Administer 50K Vaccines a Day, 500,000 in Less Than a Month DoD News 11 Mar 2021 -- DOD vaccination teams are doing their part to protect Americans, reaching the milestone of getting 500,000 shots in arms in under a month, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said today.

China

• China to Continue to Cooperate With WHO to Establish Origin of COVID-19 Sputnik 11 Mar 2021 -- China will continue to cooperate with the World Health Organization (WHO) on conducting research to trace the origin of the coronavirus, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Thursday.
• HK to issue detailed COVID-19 vaccination guidelines as early as Friday following deaths Global Times 11 Mar 2021 -- As soon as Friday, the Hong Kong regional government will issue detailed guidelines, including blood pressure and blood glucose readings, for doctors to decide whether a person can take COVID-19 vaccines, according to local media.
• Hong Kong reports 8 new COVID-19 cases People's Daily 11 Mar 2021 -- Hong Kong's Center for Health Protection (CHP) reported eight additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, taking its total tally to 11,128.
• China Reports 11 New COVID-19 Cases SPA 11 Mar 2021 -- The Chinese mainland reported 11 new COVID-19 cases during the past 24 hours.

Europe

• European Regulator Gives Approval to Johnson & Johnson One-Shot Vaccine VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- The European Union's drug regulator, the Europe Medicines Agency (EMA), has given conditional approval to Johnson & Johnson's single dose COVID-19 vaccine.
• AstraZeneca Vaccine Stopped in Denmark After Reports of Blood Clots VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- Denmark health officials announced Thursday they are suspending the use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for 14 days as it investigates reports of patients developing blood clots after being inoculated.
• UK COVID-19 Death Toll Passes 125,000 SPA 11 Mar 2021 -- Britain's official death toll from COVID-19 has passed 125,000, official data showed today, on Thursday, another grim milestone for the country which has recorded the highest number of deaths from the disease in Europe, Reuters reported.
• Italy becomes 8th European state to temporarily halt use of AstraZeneca vaccine after two deaths Press TV 11 Mar 2021 -- Italy says it has temporarily halted the use of a batch of AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccine as a precaution following the deaths of two men in Sicily who had recently been inoculated.

Russia

India

• Number of COVID-19 Cases in India Rises by 22,854 Over Past 24 Hours SPA 11 Mar 2021 -- India has confirmed 22,854 new cases of the coronavirus over the past 24 hours, with the total number of those infected having reached 11,285,561, the country's Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Thursday, according to Sputnik News Agency.
• Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu continue to report High Daily New Cases India PIB 11 Mar 2021 -- Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu continue to report high number of COVID daily new cases. They cumulatively account for 85.91% of the new cases reported in the past 24 hours.
• COVID Vaccination-Day 55 being a Gazetted Holiday (Maha Shivratri) in a Large Number of States, results in lower Vaccination numbers India PIB 11 Mar 2021 -- The cumulative number of COVID19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed 2.60 crore today.

Pakistan

• Pakistan begins inoculating elderly people against COVID-19 Global Times 11 Mar 2021 -- Pakistan on Wednesday began vaccinating its people aged 60 years and over against COVID-19, according to Special Assistant to the Pakistani Prime Minister on Health Faisal Sultan.

Iran

• COVID-19 claims 88 lives in past 24 hours in Iran: Official IRNA 11 Mar 2021 -- Some 88 more Iranians have died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) over the past 24 hours bringing the total deaths to 61,016, Iran's Health Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said on Thursday.
• First COVID-19 Indian vaccine shipment to arrive in Iran soon: Official IRNA 11 Mar 2021 -- Spokesman for Food and Drug Administration of Iran Kianoush Jahanpour said on Wednesday that the first India-made COVID-19 vaccine shipment will arrive in Iran in the coming hours.
• Iran takes delivery of 150k doses of COVAXIN from India Press TV 11 Mar 2021 -- Iranian health ministry has taken delivery of a first batch of India-made coronavirus vaccines, a fifth foreign vaccine supply arriving in the country in the past two months as authorities go ahead with a nation-wide immunization program against the virus.

Saudi Arabia

• Ministry of Health Announces Expansion of COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign SPA 11 Mar 2021 -- The Ministry of Health announced the expansion of the vaccination campaign against the Coronavirus (COVID-19), and the possibility of direct booking, according to the available dates and the nearest center.
• Health Spokesperson says vaccines approved in the Kingdom are safe and effective, urges all to get vaccinated SPA 11 Mar 2021 -- Spokesman of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdulaali, stressed that the ministry is still observing fluctuations in the registration of confirmed and critical cases.

Other Countries

• Uganda launches first phase of COVID-19 vaccination exercise Global Times 11 Mar 2021 -- Uganda on Wednesday launched the first phase of COVID-19 vaccination campaign targeting high risk groups in the east African country.
• Brazil sees record daily COVID-19 deaths over 2,000 People's Daily 11 Mar 2021 -- Brazil reported on Wednesday record high daily COVID-19 deaths at 2,286 in 24 hours, bringing the national toll to 270,656, said the Ministry of Health.
• Cambodia Marks First COVID-19 Death, One Year After Coronavirus Declared Pandemic Radio Free Asia 11 Mar 2021 -- Cambodia's Ministry of Health on Thursday confirmed the country's first COVID-19-related death, one year to the day that the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus that causes the disease a global pandemic.
• UAE Announces 2,087 New COVID-19 Cases, 1,677 Recoveries, 16 Deaths in Last 24 Hours SPA 11 Mar 2021 -- The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) announced that it conducted 225,489 additional COVID-19 tests over the past 24 hours, using state-of-the-art medical testing equipment.
• Namibia Becomes 50th Country to Approve Russian Coronavirus Vaccine Sputnik V Sputnik 11 Mar 2021 -- Namibia became the 50th country to authorise the Russian coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said on Thursday.
• Sudan Launches COVID Vaccination Campaign VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- Sudan this week launched its COVID-19 vaccination campaign, after receiving its first shipment of the AstraZeneca vaccine earlier this month through the global COVAX initiative for equitable vaccine distribution in developing countries.
• Zimbabwean Doctors Worried about Low Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccine VOA 11 Mar 2021 -- Doctors in Zimbabwe say they are worried about the slow pace of the country's COVID-19 vaccination program for front line workers.