Deutsche Welle (English edition)
Niger: Suspected jihadi attack kills 'at least 137'
Gunmen, believed to be jihadis, have raided villages near Niger's border with Mali shooting "at everything that moved," local officials have said.
The death toll in an attack on villages in southwestern Niger has risen to at least 137 people, a government spokesman said Monday.
The attack constitutes the deadliest suspected jihadi massacre to hit the African nation in recent times.
"In treating civilian populations systematically as targets now, these armed bandits have gone a step further into horror and brutality," government spokesman Zakaria Abdourahamane said in a statement on public television.
The government has revised the death toll of the attack, which was previously estimated to be 60.
What happened in the attack in Niger? Armed men on motorbikes struck the villages of Intazayene, Bakorat and Wistane near the border with Mali, shooting "at everything which moved," a local official said.
"The government condemns these brutal acts perpetrated by individuals who know neither faith nor the law," the government spokesman said.
He also announced three days of national mourning starting Tuesday, adding that the government vowed to reinforce security in the region and bring "the perpetrators of these cowardly and criminal acts" to justice.
Rising extremist attacks
The massacre comes amid an escalation in attacks following the election of President Mohamed Bazoum in late February. His election was confirmed by the country's constitutional court on Sunday.
Last week, 66 people were killed in a similar attack in the Tillaberi region, a "tri-border area" where the frontiers of Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali converge.
President Bazoum offered his condolences to the family of the victims in a tweet on Monday, calling out the "barbaric way" in which the "terrorists struck the peaceful civilian populations."
The attack also brought back memories of a January massacre that left 100 people dead in two villages in the Mangaize district of Tillaberi.
The region is plagued by jihadi activity which, according to analysts, is made worse by counterterrorism offensives that help give rise to ethnic militias.
Niger is battling the spread of deadly extremist violence, with jihadi insurgencies that have spilled over from Mali and Nigeria.
adi/rt (AFP, AP)
grams from country to country.
Varying degrees of efficiency
While Israel has become the world leader in vaccinating its population against COVID-19, Britain has managed to pull off the fastest rollout in Europe.
According to Our World in Data, as of March 19, 41.65 vaccines have been administered per 100 people in the UK. Hungary's vaccine program is the next most successful in Europe, where 20.65 doses have been administered per 100 people. The European average is 12.92, which is slightly higher than in the EU (12.54) and Germany (12.25).
The UK's vaccine rollout began two weeks earlier than in the EU. It's also progressing at a faster rate because the priority is to give a first dose. Even the under-60s with no underlying conditions are getting vaccinated, and the government has pledged to offer the country's entire adult population a first dose by July.
So far, its strategy is proving more successful than the EU's, which is also struggling with a vaccine shortage.
Some countries, including Hungary, are now administering the Russian vaccine Sputnik V, which has not yet been approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
The AstraZeneca controversy
The vaccine rollout in a number of countries has also been hampered by doubts about the British-Swedish vaccine AstraZeneca. From the outset, there were concerns about its efficacy and possible side effects, not just in Germany. It was seen as less effective than the BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna vaccines and reportedly also led to severe side effects such as fever and a general sense of being unwell.
Consequently, many people due to be vaccinated canceled their appointments when they realized they would receive an AstraZeneca shot. Then, in midMarch, reports of people — mainly middle-aged women — developing blood clots soon after receiving a dose, dealt rollout efforts a further blow when a number of countries suspended use of the vaccine. These did not include the UK, where the vaccine was developed.
After the EMA deemed the shot "safe and effective" several countries, including Germany, began using it again. Spain will resume use in the course of the week, while in France it will only be given to people over 55, when there is a decreased thrombosis risk.
Scandinavian countries are continuing to suspend its use while they review the EMA conclusion.
Travel restrictions
In welcome news to many, Germany has taken a number of holiday destinations off its highrisk list, including the Spanish island of Mallorca, the Algarve in Portugal and the Croatian island of Istria. The only actual country currently not designated highrisk is Iceland.
Holidays in other places are theoretically possible but the German Foreign Ministry warns against unnecessary travel to European countries deemed a risk area or high-incidence by the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin.
Cossing borders also remains complicated. In Germany, for example, anyone entering the country from a country deemed a risk area or high-incidence has to carry out a digital registration, according guidelines laid out by the Health Ministry. A hard copy is also permissible. There is then a compulsory fiveday quarantine period and you must, within a maximum of 48 hours after entering the country, also be able to provide proof that you are not infected with the coronavirus. The authorities may demand you submit this proof up to 10 days after your entry into the country. Home quarantine can be lifted at the earliest after five days with a negative test result.
In order to prevent the spread of new coronavirus variants in Germany, the government has banned entry from areas where these have occurred.
In some countries, the rules are even stricter – such as blanket bans on travel without urgent reason. A negative test result is compulsory almost everywhere if you are planning to remain longer than 48 hours, including in popular tourist destinations such as Greece and Austria. In Switzerland, anyone entering the country from a risk area is obligated to go into immediate quarantine for 10 days. As of March 22, the only area in Germany Switzerland deems a risk zone is the eastern state of Thuringia.