North America

DENVER (AP) — When the delta variant started spreading, Gina Welch decided not to take any chances: She got a third, booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by going to a clinic and telling them it was her first shot.

The U.S. government has not approved booster shots against the virus, saying it has yet to see evidence they are necessary. But Welch and an untold number of other Americans have managed to get them by taking advantage of the nation’s vaccine surplus and loose tracking of those who have been fully vaccinated.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators will resume a weekend session toward passage of a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package after running into opposition from a few Republicans who want to drag out final votes on one of President Joe Biden’s top priorities.

WASHINGTON, August 7. /TASS/: Western countries are waging a ‘targeted campaign’ against the use of Russian medical preparations, including the vaccine against the novel coronavirus, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov stated.

Antonov was asked by journalists to comment on the US approach regarding the use of Russia’s Sputnik-V vaccine against the ongoing global COVID-19 spread.

UNITED NATIONS, August 6. /TASS/: The discussion of withdrawal of sanctions against DPRK is currently not on the UN Security Council’s agenda, a UN source told TASS Friday.

"No meetings on this matter are currently scheduled in the work program," the source said.

WASHINGTON, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US military’s Central Command has announced the results of its forensic investigation into last week’s fatal drone attack on a merchant tanker off Oman.

It says explosives experts concluded that the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) was produced in Iran.

The evidence has been shared with explosives experts in Britain and Israel who concurred with the findings.

The attack on the Israeli-operated MT Mercer Street killed two people.

Washington, Aug 7 (PTI) Lamenting that the US has allocated only 7.5 million doses of Covid vaccines to India, a top Indian-American Congressman has urged the Biden administration to do more by expanding its global vaccine aid programme to it at a time when the world faces the threat of new, vaccine-resistant coronavirus variants.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Friday condemned "in the strongest terms" the cowardly terrorist attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of northwest Pakistan on July 14, which left nine Chinese nationals and three Pakistanis dead.

In a press statement, the members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the governments of Pakistan and China, and wished a speedy and full recovery of the injured.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Friday called on the international community to carry forward the Afghan peace process by preventing all-out war, advancing peace and reconciliation, and fighting terrorism.

Afghanistan is at a historic conjuncture of war and peace. With the hasty withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces, Afghanistan has seen increased violence, rising civilian casualties and a deteriorating security situation, said Dai Bing, charge d'affaires of China's permanent mission to the United Nations.

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — After more than six months of work combating the coronavirus, negotiating a bipartisan infrastructure bill and repairing the U.S. image abroad, President Joe Biden should be heading out on vacation and a traditional August break from Washington.

But with legislative work on the infrastructure bill keeping the Senate in session for a second straight weekend, and likely through next week, Biden hasn’t gone far — just home to Wilmington, Delaware, as he has done most weekends since taking office.

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) — Two Myanmar citizens were arrested on charges alleging that they conspired to oust Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations, who opposes the military junta that seized power earlier this year, by injuring — or even killing — him.

Phyo Hein Htut and Ye Hein Zaw plotted to seriously injure or kill Myanmar’s ambassador in an attack that was to take place on American soil, U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a release Friday.