The first confirmed case of the Covid-19 Omicron variant in the United States has been detected in a person in California, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday. "The individual was a traveller who returned from South Africa on November 22, 2021," the agency said.  "The individual, who was fully vaccinated and had mild symptoms that are improving, is self-quarantining and has been since testing positive. All close contacts have been contacted and have tested negative." The case was detected by the California and San Francisco Departments of Public Health and confirmed by the CDC. The Omicron variant was first reported in South Africa and has been designated a variant of concern by the World Health Organization. Scientists do not yet have hard data, but based on the variant's pattern of mutations, it is expected to at least partly evade the protective action of current vaccines, and may be more transmissible than Delta, the dominant global strain. The US is planning tougher testing and quarantine requirements for international travelers arriving in the country, including taking a Covid-19 test one day prior to departure, the CDC said...

WTA Tour chairman Steve Simon said Wednesday the women’s tennis circuit is suspending all tournaments in China over concerns about the safety of Chinese player Peng Shuai. “I am announcing the immediate suspension of all WTA tournaments in China, including Hong Kong,” said Simon. “In good conscience, I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete there when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her allegation of sexual assault.” Simon also said he was worried for the safety of other WTA players and staff at tournaments in China next year. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta 

Technology and digital innovation can have a significant role in combatting hate speech when paired with robust legislation that protects end-users, Meta public policy manager Flavio Arzarello has said. Arzarello, who works for the company previously known as Facebook, was speaking during a panel discussion on safeguarding against digital threats at a conference organised by the Malta Communications Authority.  He said that, over the years, Meta has invested heavily in combatting harmful content on its platform and, in the last three quarters, managed to reduce hate speech from Facebook by 50 per cent. “Protecting users from harm has always been one of our top priorities. Over the years, Facebook has had to work to address serious ethical matters and major societal issues that balance digital privacy with security,” he said.  “Where do we draw the line between freedom of expression and harmful content? How do we distinguish between what is truthful and what is a distraction? We are often in a position to make decisions on content which we would much rather avoid making alone. So, this is why we ask for more regulations because we are fully aware that we, as a platform, should...

Inter moved to within one point of Serie A pacesetters Napoli on Wednesday after comfortably seeing off Spezia 2-0, while Roma crashed to a miserable 1-0 defeat at Bologna. Roberto Gagliardini and Lautaro Martinez struck in each half for Inter at a freezing San Siro as Simone Inzaghi’s side jumped above AC Milan in second place ahead of their city rivals’ match at struggling Genoa in one of two late fixtures. It extends Inter’s unbeaten run in all competitions to 10 games and was their fourth win on the bounce with a much-changed line-up as Inzaghi shuffled his deck with a host of defensive injuries and a trip to Roma coming on Saturday. Inter’s hot streak has them right on the heels of Napoli, who are at Sassuolo at the same time as Milan face club legend Andriy Shevchenko at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

A spectacular illuminated walk-through has been set up in the gardens of Verdala Palace by the Tourism Authority to raise funds for the Community Chest Fund Foundation. It features larger-than-life lantern illuminated sculptures, light installations, and light projections including four-metre dragons and other magical creatures, a 'train station. 'Artic World' and 'Candy Land'.   The show remains open until January 9. Ticket information and details are available at https://illuminatedtrailmalta.com/ Photos by Chris Sant Fournier.   

A US policeman shot and killed a wheelchair-bound shoplifter, hitting him nine times in the back and side as he rolled away from the officer, media reported Wednesday. The shooting is the latest in a country where law enforcement readily resorts to deadly force when confronting criminal suspects. Police in Tucson, Arizona said off-duty officer Ryan Remington was working as a security guard in a retail area when 61-year-old Richard Lee Richards was believed to have stolen a toolbox from a Walmart. Footage released by the department shows Remington several feet (a couple of meters) behind Richards, asking him to stop. When Richards continues to move his motorized wheelchair away, Remington opens fire with nine bullets, hitting the suspected shoplifter in the back and the side. Tucson police chief Chris Magnus said Remington had been called to help by a Walmart employee. "According to the employee, he caught up with Mr. Richards outside as he fled the store and asked to see a receipt for the toolbox," CNN quoted Magnus as saying. "Instead of providing the receipt, Mr. Richards brandished a knife and said, 'Here's your receipt.'" Magnus told a press conference he was "deeply...

Karim Benzema applauded Real Madrid’s fans after they chanted “Karim, Ballon d’Or” as his goal against Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday sent Madrid seven points clear at the top of La Liga. Benzema’s 20th goal in 24 games this season proved the difference in a 1-0 victory at the Santiago Bernabeu that puts Madrid firmly in charge of the Spanish title race, even after only 15 games played. “We’re on a good run and I like the atmosphere right now in the team,” said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti.   Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

Liverpool thrashed local rivals Everton 4-1 to pile the pressure on former Reds boss Rafael Benitez on Wednesday, while victories for Chelsea and Manchester City ensured the Premier League top three remain separated by just two points. Leaders Chelsea were made to work hard for a 2-1 win at Watford in one of two games held up by lengthy delays to allow treatment for an ill supporter in the crowd. Former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard could not do his old club a favour as his 100 percent start as Aston Villa manager was ended by a 2-1 defeat to City.   Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

A major Malta-Italy drug ring has been laid bare in Italian court documents which detail how cocaine and cannabis were smuggled into the island using a local ferry company before being hidden in an Attard fruit and vegetable shop.  The documents, seen by Times of Malta, include reams of transcripts of recorded conversations from inside drug smugglers’ cars as well as intercepted telephone calls between Maltese and Italian traffickers who eventually turned on one another. At one point they even discussed killing one of their associates whom they suspected of collaborating with the police.  Italian law enforcement yesterday announced the arrest of 16 people, including a Maltese national, for moving large quantities of cocaine and cannabis from Albania into Italy and eventually on to Malta.  Codenamed ‘Operation La Vallette’, the bust saw the arrest of 55-year-old John Spiteri, known to his associates as ‘Gianni’. Spiteri is alleged to have run the Maltese end of the smuggling operation together with some as yet unidentified associates.   Fabian Catania, also 55, was named as one of the Maltese players but was not arrested in operation La Vallette. He is already facing criminal...

Climate change is a continuous tragedy that humanity is self-inflicting. Our behaviour is turning the world into something none of us wants to see in the future. The Glasgow climate change summit was depicted as the last chance to avoid a catastrophe. Was it a success? It seems like the summit was more of a case of managing to steer the boat just enough not to sink but far from being out of the danger zone. It should be made clear that Glasgow was never going to be a ‘fix it all’ conference resolving all the issues around climate change. This may have been the impression wrongly given by some. The UN process is a slow and bureaucratic one and has clear difficulties in responding swiftly to problems it was designed to address, let alone challenges it was not designed to tackle. Essentially, Glasgow is not only about what governments agreed to implement but also how citizens will make the changes required to make a difference. People’s ability to change their lifestyle to a greener one and express their voting preferences (where possible) towards those who truly have the environment at heart is the basis for any success in climate action across the globe. However, we have to see...

Obituary CAMILLERI. On November 24, at Mater Dei Hospital, JOE, of Birżebbuġa, passed away peacefully. He leaves to mourn his loss his mother Voilet Camilleri, widow of Paul Camilleri, of Birżebbuġa, his wife Shirley, his sisters Carmen, Rita and her husband Albert, his brother Leo and his wife Miriam, nephews, nieces and friends. A Mass for the repose of his soul will be concelebrated on Saturday, December 4, at Birżebbuġa parish church, at 8.30am. Lord, grant him eternal rest. The family regret they are unable to receive visitors. CAMILLERI. On November 30, at Mater Dei Hospital, MARIE-THÉRÈSE, aged 78, of Ta’ Xbiex, spouse of the late Nazzareno Camilleri, passed away peacefully. She leaves to mourn her loss her son Dr David James Camilleri and his wife Dr Amalia Camilleri Bonello, her nephew Adriel, her nieces Marinella Julie and Fabiana Mea, family and friends. The funeral cortège leaves Mater Dei Hospital today, Thursday, December 2, at 8.15am, proceeding to St John of the Cross parish church, Ta’ Xbiex, where Mass will be said at 9.15am, in celebration of her life. Interment will follow at Santa Maria Addolorata Cemetery. May the Lord grant her eternal rest. Special thanks...

An exhibition of terracotta crib figurines (pasturi) was recently held at the Dar Karmni Grima museum in Għarb. The figurines are the work of Nino Cascio, who runs one of the stores of Cascio Ceramiche in Sciacca, a town and comune in the province of Agrigento on the southwestern coast of Sicily. The store is located in the historic centre, a few steps from Piazza Angelo Scandaliato. At the exhibition there were other ceramic items from Cascio, including an image of Our Lady of Ta’ Pinu. Cascio is no newcomer to Gozo. He has already exhibited on the island and also in Malta. According to historians, the Knights of St John in Malta used to order their ceramics from Sciacca. Among the many items bought from Sciacca were decorative vases used for medicine,  and which are found at the Sagra Infermeria in Valletta. Cermic objects brought over from Sciacca are found in several palaces and museums in Malta. Proceeds from the sale of items exhibited at Dar Karmni Grima are being used for the upkeep of the museum.

Opinion polls have become part and parcel of modern life. Companies wanting to sell a product regularly conduct these polls in order to gauge the prevailing tastes of customers and, thus, tailor their products to suit the clients’ tastes. Political parties have also taken to opinion polls to gauge the varying political appetites of voters. This trend has been in fashion many years now and the PL and the PN are no exception to this rule. The two Maltese parties conduct regular polls, the results of which are never revealed to the public. What happens is that they then try to adapt their politics to the prevailing expectations of the voters. This has, thus, led to the eclipse of traditional socialist values and to the pro­pagation of populistic views, which try to reflect the wishes and expectations of a middle class business oriented society. In reality, not much has changed in these last eight years: the PL always comes up top and the PN is left trailing, miles behind. Indeed, this last year, the opinion polls have consistently confirmed that the gap between the PL and the PN is increasing and has become insurmountable. The polls also confirm the figure of around 25 per cent of...

Letting sleeping dogs lie To be honest, as a layman I was puzzled by Giovanni Bonello’s explanation of why Malta’s criminal code does not make therapeutic abortion a crime (November 29). I follow Bonello’s argument that one must look at the entirety of a law to correctly understand what the meaning and application of any of its provisions should be. He then relates article 241 of the criminal code, which states that applying procedures to secure any abortion constitutes a crime, to article 223, which provides the “mitigating context” that keeps therapeutic abortion outside the purview of article 241. Article 223 exempts causing “bodily harm” or “homicide” from being considered a criminal offence when “imposed by actual necessity either in lawful self-defence or in the lawful defence of another person”. Nowhere does article 241 mention causing bodily harm or homicide. And it is not clear how self-defence comes into a situation of therapeutic abortion. There is no definition that I can find of self-defence in the criminal code itself. A definition I have been given culled from outside Maltese law is the following: Self defence “is defined as the right to prevent suffering force or...

The traditional Baby Jesus procession on Christmas Eve, launched more than a century ago by St Ġorġ Preca, founder of the Catholic catechism society MUSEUM, is again being cancelled owing to COVID-19 restrictions. So long as all public manifestations, religious or profane, were prohibited, there was nothing to justify any challenge to such an order by the health authorities but now that hundreds may participate in fun runs, soccer stadia are open to the public and other profane public mani­festations are allowed, why are the local health authorities being so intransigent with regard to a religious procession, which is part of Maltese Christmas traditions? The traditional religious activity consists of a statuette of Baby Jesus lying in a small manger being carried outdoors, shoulder high, by young boys and followed by a small crowd of adults and youngsters, with, sometimes, a small band playing Christmas hymns and songs. Certainly, such activity is much less dangerous, as far as infections and contagion go, than attending a football match or running with hundreds of others. By no stretch of the imagination can it be defined as a mass event, which is defined by the World Health...

Anti-social behaviour has the potential to cause serious distress to people or even ruin lives. It also tends to create an environment in which more serious crime threatens to take hold if the sociopaths who cause trouble are not tackled firmly enough. While anti-social behaviour has always existed, it appears to have reached alarming levels in certain areas of the country, posing a real threat to the physical and mental well-being of residents. This newspaper has reported on incidents involving a group of youths who intimidated a family in Qawra. These young people were reportedly hooded and armed with knives. They attempted to break down the door of a family’s home. One person who witnessed this incident said that the gangs “seem to be untouchable and unafraid”. This sort of incident calls for firm and effective action on the ground by law enforcement authorities. Citizens expect the police, local councils, social welfare and other agencies to make tackling anti-social behaviour a priority and to respond promptly and professionally to such situations. The police, above all, need to react immediately and make sure to nip the problem in the bud. But the sobering reality is that...

The WHO issued stern warnings Wednesday on the dangers of vaccination apathy and the European Union put mandatory jabs on the table as the United States registered its first case of the fast-spreading Omicron strain of the coronavirus. The new variant, first reported to the World Health Organization by South Africa a week ago, has quickly popped up across continents, darkening economic forecasts and deepening fears of another difficult winter in the northern hemisphere. "Globally, we have a toxic mix of low vaccine coverage, and very low testing - a recipe for breeding and amplifying variants," said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, reminding the world that the Delta variant "accounts for almost all cases". "We need to use the tools we already have to prevent transmission and save lives from Delta. And if we do that, we will also prevent transmission and save lives from Omicron." The WHO says it could take several weeks to understand whether or not Omicron is more transmissible, and whether it results in more severe disease - as well as how effective current treatments and vaccines are against it. Its detection and spread, however, have highlighted that the now nearly...

In the aftermath of the publication of the latest financial statements from the world’s two largest technology giants during the last week of October, Microsoft tipped Apple once again as the world’s most valuable publicly traded company as its market capitalisation surpassed the US$2.5 trillion mark. Microsoft and Apple have vied for the position of the most highly valued public company since the iPhone manufacturer first overtook its tech rival in May 2010, and retained its position until early December 2018. Microsoft’s superior market value remained largely intact until mid-October 2019 as Apple regained the number one position until the pandemic-induced sell-off which took place in the first part of 2020. At the start of the market rally that started in the second half of March 2020 until the end of May 2020, Microsoft was once again atop Apple, but the situation quickly reversed as Apple dominated the rest of 2020. In fact, Apple’s equity performed stronger than that of Microsoft in 2020 with a share price gain of 71% compared to Microsoft’s 40% gain. In August 2020, Apple became the first publicly traded company in the US to reach a $2 trillion market capitalisation.

Hypocrisy – Billy Connolly reminds us – is the vaseline of political intercourse. But perhaps even Connolly might have been taken aback by the slipperiness displayed in parliament when, in Monday’s debate, Robert Abela exerted himself for the benefit of Anġlu Farrugia. The opposition wanted a vote of no confidence in the Speaker after he failed to act on a decision, by the parliamentary standards committee, to issue a stern repri­mand to the Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar. It was a resolution that Farrugia himself had voted for. No one expected Labour to vote against Farrugia. But Abela’s arguments managed to tarnish the dignity of parliament even more than Farrugia had already done. First, the prime minister ignored parliament’s auto­nomy. He proclaimed that Cutajar, in not declaring a gift from Yorgen Fenech, had already paid the necessary penalty by resigning her post as junior minister. That, however, was the penalty she paid for bringing the executive branch of government into disrepute. It’s separable from the reparations she, as backbencher, owes the legislative branch. It was parliament’s rules that she flouted when she didn’t declare the gift. It was parliament’s standards...

Michael Carrick believes Cristiano Ronaldo will flourish in the intense pressing system preferred by Manchester United interim manager’s Ralf Rangnick. It has been suggested United striker Ronaldo does not have the qualities required to thrive in Rangnick’s workaholic game-plan. Rangnick has been hired as United boss until the end of the season after the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.  With the German still awaiting a work permit, Carrick remains in caretaker charge for Arsenal’s visit to Old Trafford on Thursday. And he has no doubts his 36-year-old Portugal star will be able to cope with Rangnick’s tactics. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta