US mothers divided on vaccines for young children

Younger people may be offered alternative vaccines to the AstraZeneca jab, says Prof Paul Hunter.

Free and and fair trade is in the European Union’s DNA, but the EU will have to take measures if AstraZeneca does not deliver the agreed quantities of Covid-19 vaccinations, an Austrian MEP says. Export controls or even export bans should be considered if that does not work, Angelika Winzig told BBC World News. The…

The 2021 Oscar nominations are the most diverse Oscars ever, with nine of the 20 acting nominees from non-white backgrounds. And two women were nominated for best director – the first time more than one woman has been shortlisted for that prize in the awards’ 93-year history. Anna Smith, a film critic and host of…

The Middle East is warming faster than much of the world, and Kuwait is careering towards unbearable temperatures. With the mercury topping 53C, three Kuwaiti citizens – an influencer, a weather forecaster and a retired civil servant – raise the alarm. They urge that Kuwait must not be allowed to get any hotter – and…

Hamas is willing to have a ceasefire but Israel is abstaining from accepting it, the secretary general of the Palestinian National Initiative has said. Dr Mustafa Barghouti told BBC World News that a ceasefire meant both sides would not shoot, but if Israel continued to conduct airstrikes it could not expect the Palestinians to stop…

A second wave of coronavirus is sweeping through India overwhelming hospitals, morgues and crematoria. Protima Singh, who is managing operations on the ground for the International Federation of Red Cross, told BBC World News that the situation was very critical with so many people becoming infected with coronavirus. The needs are large, the hospitals are…