USA

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that human rights must not only be available to the privileged few and joint efforts must be made to deliver them.

"Much like COVID-19 vaccines, human rights will not lead to a healthier world if they are only available to the privileged few," the UN chief told the UN General Assembly briefing on the Call to Action for Human Rights.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department’s internal watchdog is reviewing a former Boeing engineer’s allegations that he was unfairly investigated by the FBI on suspicion that he was spying for China, according to correspondence and court filings reviewed by The Associated Press. It’s the latest challenge related to secretive surveillance powers used in some terrorism and espionage cases.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Linda Thomas-Greenfield takes up her post as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations on Thursday and a senior Russian diplomat said the red carpet will be rolled out and Moscow is ready to work with the Biden administration -- but “it takes two to tango.”

After being sworn in on Wednesday by Vice President Kamala Harris, Thomas-Greenfield headed to New York where she is scheduled to present her credentials to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Thursday afternoon.

NEW YORK (AP) — The Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation is formally expanding a $3 million financial relief fund that it quietly launched earlier this month, to help people struggling to make ends meet during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles County on Wednesday reported another 806 deaths from coronavirus during the winter surge, pushing California’s toll above 50,000, or about one-tenth of the U.S. total from the pandemic.

The county, which has a quarter of the state’s 40 million residents, said the deaths mainly occurred between Dec. 3 and Feb. 3. The Department of Public Health identified them after going through death records that were backlogged by the sheer volume of the surge’s toll.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Capitol Police knew armed extremists were primed for violence at the iconic building on Jan. 6 and even provided officers with assault rifles to protect lawmakers, the acting chief acknowledged Wednesday. But the wild invasion of the Capitol was far worse than police expected, leaving them unprepared to fight it off.

(AP) --- A real-world test of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine in more than half a million people confirms that it’s very effective at preventing serious illness or death, even after one dose.

Wednesday’s published results, from a mass vaccination campaign in Israel, give strong reassurance that the benefits seen in smaller, limited testing persisted when the vaccine was used much more widely in a general population with various ages and health conditions.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans rallied solidly Wednesday against Democrats’ proposed $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill as lawmakers awaited a decision by the Senate’s parliamentarian that could bolster or potentially kill a pivotal provision hiking the federal minimum wage.

Despite their paper-thin congressional majorities, Democratic leaders were poised to push the sweeping package through the House on Friday. They were hoping the Senate, where changes seem likely, would follow quickly enough to have legislation on President Joe Biden’s desk by mid-March.

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 23 (APP): Despite a drop in civilians killed and injured overall in 2020, there was a rise in civilian casualties following the start of peace negotiations in September, according to a UN human rights report released Tuesday.

In their annual Afghanistan Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict Annual Report, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the UN Assistance Mission in the country (UNAMA) documented some 8,820 civilian casualties (3,035 deaths and 5,785 injuries) in 2020, about 15 per cent less than in 2019.

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 24 (APP): The world must stop it’s assault on nature and find more political will to combat climate change, the president of United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Ambassador Munir Akram of Pakistan, has told the 5th UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-5).

“The impact of global warming and climate change are visible and the impacts of biodiversity loss, though less visible, will be equally devastating for the future of humanity,” the Pakistani envoy said in a speech to the Assembly, which ended a two-day online meeting on Tuesday.