Critics Choice Awards postponed
The Critics Choice Awards ceremony has been postponed and will now be conducted at a later date. The ceremony is likely to be conducted on a date when BAFTA Awards will be conducted. The 27th edition of the Critics Choice Awards will be hosted by Taye Diggs and Nicole Byer in an in-person event in Century City in California.
Indian-origin Rishi Sunak front-runner for Britain’s PM post?
Indian-origin Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak has a major chance of becoming Britain’s next Prime Minister after the odds tipped in his favour. This comes as pressure mounts on embattled British Prime Minister Boris Johnson even from within his own Conservative Party to exit 10 Downing Street.
As per a major bookmaker in the UK, Betfair, odds are against the current British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and he is expected to step down soon. The 57-year-old is facing flak for an alleged drinks party during Britain’s first COVID-19 lockdown until May 2020.
Boris Johnson issued a heartfelt apology at the House of Commons for the breach of lockdown guidelines and Rishi Sunak was interestingly not present during the convening of house then.
Prince Andrew stripped of Royal Patronages, Military titles
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip,
Duke of Edinburgh, has been stripped of all his military and royal titles. The Royal family member, who was the ninth in line of succession to the British throne has been forced to relinquish all his ties with royal titles after being involved in a sexual abuse scandal.
His lawyers failed to persuade a U.S. judge to dismiss a civil lawsuit filed against him, which accuses the royal of sexual abuse. He will now no longer hold military affiliations and royal patronages.
Buckingham Palace officially announced on January 13, 2022 that Prince Andrew's titles and patronages have been returned to his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
WHO recommends two new drugs for COVID-19
The World Health Organisation has recommended the use of two new drugs called interleukin-6 (IL-6) and baricitinib in combination with corticosteroids to treat patients with severe or critical COVID-19 infection. The recommendation by WHO is based on the new evidence from seven trials that involved over 4,000 patients with severe, non-severe, and critical COVID-19 infection. As per the experts, when both the drugs are available, one should be chosen on the basis of the cost availability and clinical experience. The usage of both drugs at the same time is not recommended. The updated guidelines of WHO also recommends the use of monoclonal antibody drugs in the patients with mild COVID symptoms, but only in those at the highest risk of hospitalization.
US to distribute at-home, Rapid COVID-19 tests for free to all Americans
The Government of the United States has decided to expand the testing capacity by distributing rapid COVID-19 tests for free to Americans. The half-billion tests will be available for order from January 19, 2022, and will be mailed directly.
Underwater volcanic eruption in Tonga felt across the globe, Tsunami waves hit Pacific coastlines
A massive underwater volcanic eruption was recorded in the small island country of Tonga on January 15, 2022. The event triggered Tsunami warning along the Pacific coast. Tsunami waves were seen crashing onto the shores in Tonga but the full extent of damage is unclear as the Pacific Island nation remains cut off from the world with communications line down.
The force of the volcanic eruption was such that Tsunami warnings were issued in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Russia, Chile and the United States. Tsunami waves were observed in the southern Japanese island of Amami-Oshima and many other places along the coastline on January 16th.
Japan's Meteorological Agency had issued tsunami warnings for the Amami Islands and the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture. A 120-centimeter tsunami wave was observed in Kominato on Amami-Oshima Island. Besides this, tsunami waves up to 90 centimetres were observed along Japan's Pacific coast from the southern island of Kyushu to the northern island of Hokkaido.
An evacuation order was issued for at least 230,000 people in eight prefectures of the country. People were advised to stay on high alert and evacuate to higher ground. Russia also issued tsunami warnings, as waves of up to 20 centimetres were expected in Russia's Kuril Islands. Over 100 families were also evacuated from shoreline Samoan villages.
