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Russian Ministry of Defense: 37 Ukrainian drones destroyed in 4 hours over regions of Russia and the Black Sea.
Sheikh Qassem: Our supporters make up more than half of Lebanon's population, and all of these people are united under the banner of protecting Lebanon, its Resistance, its people, and its integrity.
Sheikh Qassem: There will be no phased handing in of our arms. [The Israelis] must first enact the agreement before we start talking about a defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: Be brave in the face of foreign pressures, and we will be by your side in this stance.
Sheikh Qassem: Stripping us of our arms is like stripping us of our very soul, and this will prompt us to show them our might.
Sheikh Qassem: We will not abandon our arms, for they gave us dignity; we will not abandon our arms, for they protect us against our enemy.
Sheikh Qassem: The US efforts we are seeing are aimed at sabotaging Lebanon and constitute a call for sedition.
Sheikh Qassem: If you truly want to establish sovereignty and work for Lebanon’s interests, then stop the aggression.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States, which is meddling in Lebanon, is not trustworthy but rather poses a danger to it.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States is preventing the weapons that protect the homeland.

Scientists Warn of New COVID Variant

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Agencies
  • 24 Nov 2021 23:35
  • 1 Shares
2 Min Read

The B.1.1.529 variant was discovered for the first time in Botswana, and six cases have since been discovered in South Africa.

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  • Scientists Warn of New Covid Variant
    The new variation was first discovered in Botswana. 

Scientists have cautioned that a new COVID type with an "extremely high number" of mutations could cause further illness outbreaks by avoiding the body's immune system.

Although the number of cases validated by genomic sequencing is limited, with only 10 cases reported in three countries, the variant has alarmed some researchers since some of the changes may aid the virus in evading immunity.

The spike protein, which is used by most vaccines to boost the immune system against Covid, contains 32 mutations in the B.1.1.529 variation.

In addition to affecting the virus's capacity to infect cells and disseminate, mutations in the spike protein make it more difficult for immune cells to combat the infection.

Three examples have already been sequenced in Botswana, where the variation was first discovered. 

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Six more have been confirmed in South Africa, with one confirmed in Hong Kong in a visitor returning from the country.

Critical variant should "very, very much be monitored"

Dr. Tom Peacock, a virologist at Imperial College London, shared information on the novel variant on a genome-sharing website, adding that the new variant was discovered by chance, “incredibly high amount of spike mutations suggest this could be of real concern.”

In a series of tweets, Peacock said it “very, very much should be monitored due to that horrific spike profile,” but added that it may turn out to be an “odd cluster” that is not very transmissible. “I hope that’s the case,” he wrote.

Dr. Meera Chand, the UK Health Security Agency's COVID-19 incident director, said the agency was continually monitoring the status of Sars-CoV-2 variants as they emerged and developed in collaboration with scientific authorities around the world.

“As it is in the nature of viruses to mutate often and at random, it is not unusual for small numbers of cases to arise featuring new sets of mutations. Any variants showing evidence of spread are rapidly assessed,” she said.

The first cases of the variant were collected in Botswana on 11 November, and the earliest in South Africa was recorded three days later. 

  • B.1.1.529 variant
  • COVID-19
  • South Africa
  • Botswana
  • Coronavirus

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