Daily News Briefing
Brief. Me - December 16, 2025 2:59 am
Covid-19: Test blitz to ‘find every case’ of South African variant
BBC News says a door-to-door testing blitz is getting under way in a bid to find “every single case” of the South African coronavirus variant in England.
On-the-spot doorstep tests, home testing kits and mobile testing units will be deployed to try to reach 80,000 people in eight specific areas.
It follows fears that the more infectious version may be spreading in communities in England.
The health secretary said he wanted to “come down hard” on the variant.
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Turkey arrests dozens of students at peaceful protest over LGBT rights
France24 says President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday lashed out at Turkey’s LGBT movement, accusing it of “vandalism” following an outbreak of student protests.
Four people were arrested over the weekend for depicting Islam’s holiest site with pictures of the LGBT rainbow flag during a rally at Istanbul’s Bogazici University.
And shortly after Erdogan’s televised speech on Monday, another rally erupted at the same school with dozens of people detained and social media footage showing police dragging away students who had been protesting peacefully.
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Portugal to receive planeload of German doctors, hospital beds & ventilators to counter dire Covid-19 surge
RT News says Germany will send 26 doctors, nurses and hygiene experts to Portugal on Wednesday to help prop up the nation’s Covid-19 efforts as it battles one of the world’s worst outbreaks, the German defense minister said on Monday.
“We support our friends in Portugal who find themselves in an especially dramatic situation,” Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said.
The German military medical team will stay in Portugal for three weeks. Berlin is also sending 150 infusion machines and 50 ventilators, which are also set to arrive in Lisbon by plane on Wednesday.
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Lebanon hits Daesh terror cell in border town
Arab News says Lebanese security forces said on Monday they had smashed a Daesh terrorist cell operating near the border with Syria.
Eighteen Lebanese and Syrian nationals were arrested and a large quantity of weapons and ammunition was seized in an intelligence operation in the border town of Arsal, the Armed Forces Command said.
Those arrested “belong to cells linked to the terrorist organization Daesh” and had been “planning to carry out terrorist acts,” a military spokesman said.
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Iran’s Zarif proposes coordinated return to nuclear deal with US
Aljazeera says Iran’s foreign minister has said a EU official could help “synchronise” or “coordinate” efforts by Iran and the US to return to a 2015 nuclear accord, as a standstill persists over which country will take the first step.
Mohammad Javad Zarif said the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), created a joint commission coordinated by the EU’s foreign policy chief.
That official, Josep Borrell, can “choreograph the actions” needed from both sides, Zarif said.“There can be a mechanism to basically either synchronise it or coordinate what can be done,” he said.
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Dozens leave Republican Party, calling it a ‘Trump cult’
TRT World says dozens of Republicans in former President George W. Bush’s administration are leaving the party, dismayed by a failure of many elected Republicans to disown Donald Trump after his false claims of election fraud sparked a deadly storming of the US Capitol last month.
These officials, some who served in the highest echelons of the Bush administration, said they had hoped that a Trump defeat would lead party leaders to move on from the former president and denounce his baseless claims that the November presidential election was stolen.
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Republicans Hold ‘Useful’ Meeting with Biden on New Virus Relief Aid
VOA says a group of Republican senators held a “frank and very useful” meeting with President Joe Biden about a new round of coronavirus economic relief as congressional Democrats took steps to push ahead on a relief bill with or without Republican support.
Senator Susan Collins told reporters following the Monday night meeting with Biden, “It was a very good exchange of views.” However, she said the two sides did not reach an agreement on a bipartisan package.
UK WEATHER FORECAST
SUNRISE 07:40
SUNSET 16:54
TODAY
Snow will continue in northern England and southern Scotland, with the far north staying dry. It will be cloudy in the south, with showers moving across during the afternoon, heavy in places.
TONIGHT
This evening, snow will continue in northern areas, and the heavy showers will move over northern England. The coastline of southern England could see some rain move in from the south overnight.
Tweets
life pre covid was so unsanitary if you actually think about it.
— dizzle (@wendizzle__) February 1, 2021
Make no mistake about it: Mitch McConnell is disavowing Marjorie Taylor Greene because he knows she accurately represents the GOP and that’s bad for business.
— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) February 2, 2021
If she could help him win an election, he’d be asking to borrow her tinfoil hat.
FROM WTX NEWS
https://wtxnews.com/2021/02/02/top-ten-safest-airlines-to-fly-on-in-2021/
https://wtxnews.com/2021/02/01/evan-rachel-wood-marilyn-manson-abuse/
RENAISSANCE
“Go ahead, make my day.”
Captain Tom Moore: Family in hospital with charity fundraiser after coronavirus diagnosis
Family members of Captain Sir Tom Moore are with him in hospital after he tested positive for Covid-19, Bedford Hospital has said.
The 100-year-old charity fundraiser was taken to hospital on Sunday, after being treated for pneumonia for some time and testing positive for the virus the week before last. – The Independent
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wants to draft a new ‘civilian’ constitution
In an unexpected comment on Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke of the need to draft a new and “civilian” constitution for Turkey.
During a televised speech following a Cabinet meeting, Erdogan recalled that the country’s last two constitutions – enacted in 1961 and 1982 – were drafted following military coups, and contained “indelible” traces of the “military tutelage”. – Euronews
Powerful winter storm hits US northeast coast, disrupts life in New York
A powerful winter storm has engulfed much of the US Northeast as several inches of snow fell across vast swaths of the region and high winds swept coastal areas, causing widespread disruption in New York City and other major urban centres in the region.
The nor’easter – a strong East Coast storm whose winds blow from the northeast – is forecast to bring 31 cm to 61 cm (1 to 2 feet) of snow to some areas of the United States’ most densely populated region through Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service on Monday. – TRT World
Oman considers stricter measures as people are caught violating quarantine
People have been avoiding self-quarantining in Oman by getting elderly members of their families to wear their tracking bracelets, national daily Times of Oman reported on Tuesday, citing the Ministry of Health.
“We have received messages of some people taking off their tracking bracelet after arriving at the country’s border crossings, and putting them on elderly people who do not usually leave the home,” the report quoted the Minister of Health Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Saidi. – Arab News
Top Chinese diplomat calls for China, US to mend relations
China’s top diplomat called on Tuesday (Feb 1) for Beijing and Washington to put relations back on a predictable and constructive path, saying the United States should stop meddling in China’s internal affairs, like Hong Kong and Tibet.
Yang Jiechi, director of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party, is the highest ranking Chinese leader to speak on China-US relations since President Joe Biden took office. – CNA
Scrap interest on student loans, say vice-chancellors
The interest on student loans in England should be scrapped for 15 months, a group of universities says.
The vice-chancellors of seven universities say this would cover the period from the first national lockdown until summer 2021.
They say waiving the charge would ease the pressure on graduates.
The call comes as the government announces an extra £50m for student hardship funds in England, on top of £20m agreed in December. – BBC News
Business news
Brexit: UK fashion industry warns it faces threat to survival – BBC Business
Scams hit highest number on record in 2020 – but more than half of people who fall victim don’t report them – Sky Business
Asian markets buoyant as U.S. stimulus package debate looms – Reuters
The US and UK chart different courses on worker rights – FT News
Sports News
Liverpool transfer news: Ozan Kabak joins on loan as Ben Davies signs from Preston – Read on
Joel Matip: Liverpool centre-back to miss rest of season – Read on
Joshua King: Everton sign Norway striker from Bournemouth – Read on
Serena Williams & Katie Boulter win as Australian Open warm-ups begin – Read on
Cultura
YOUR QUESTIONS answered
what happened at the capitol?
On January 6, 2021, a mob of rioters supporting United States President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election stormed the U.S. Capitol, breaching security and occupying parts of the building for several hours.
After attending a rally organized by Trump, thousands of his supporters marched down Pennsylvania Avenue before many stormed the United States Capitol in an effort to disrupt the electoral college vote count during a joint session of Congress and prevent the formalization of President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory.
After breaching police perimeters, they occupied, vandalized, and ransacked parts of the building for several hours. The insurrection led to the evacuation and lockdown of the Capitol building and five deaths. – Read on
what does brexit mean?
Brexit was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom) at the end of 31 January 2020 CET.
To date, the UK is the first and only country formally to leave the EU, after 47 years of membership within the bloc, after having first joined its predecessor, the European Communities (EC), on 1 January 1973.
It continued to participate in the European Union Customs Union and European Single Market during a transition period that ended on 31 December 2020 at 23:00 GMT. – Read on
covid-19 meaning
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).
It was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in January 2020 and a pandemic in March 2020.
As of 11 January 2021, more than 90.3 million cases have been confirmed, with more than 1.93 million deaths attributed to COVID-19.
coronavirus definition
Meaning of “coronavirus” and related terminology “coronavirus” means severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)
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Get the latest NHS information and advice about coronavirus (COVID-19)