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W.H.O. approves first ever malaria vaccine

Published

4 years ago

October 7, 2021

James Kleeman

The World Health Organisation has endorsed the first ever vaccine to combat malaria, a disease responsible for more than 500,000 deaths every year

The disease continues to be deadly in many countries and mainly kills babies and infants, predominately across Africa.

The vaccine, made by British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, encourages a child’s immune system to thwart the deadliest of the five malaria pathogens.

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1445783298756595721

The approval comes after a successful pilot programme in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi that reached more than 800,000 children since 2019.

World Health Organisation’s director general says the rollout is “historic” and that he’s “longed for the day that we could have an effective vaccine against this ancient and terrible disease”.

A study last year found that if the vaccine were rolled out in countries with the highest incidence of malaria, it could prevent 5.4 million cases and 23,000 deaths in children younger than five each year.

The vaccine is not just a first for malaria – it is the first to be developed for any parasitic disease.

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Fourth death confirmed due to Optus outage issues

Fourth death confirmed following Optus outage that blocked Triple Zero calls for 13 hours during network upgrade

Published

52 minutes ago

September 20, 2025

Ahron Young

Fourth death confirmed following Optus outage that blocked Triple Zero calls for 13 hours during network upgrade

In Short:
– A fourth death is confirmed due to an Optus network failure affecting emergency calls for 13 hours.
– Optus CEO announced an investigation after communication failures and criticism from politicians and emergency services.

A fourth death has been confirmed following an Optus network failure that prevented emergency calls to Triple Zero for 13 hours.

Initially, Optus reported three fatalities, including an infant and two elderly individuals from South Australia and Western Australia. The latest victim is a 49-year-old man from Perth.Optus CEO Stephen Rue expressed deep sorrow over the incident and announced a full investigation into the network update that caused the outage.

He stated that approximately 600 calls to emergency services were disrupted, impacting residents across South Australia, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory.

Rue confirmed that the outage stemmed from a problematic firewall upgrade and revealed details of communication failures within the company. Politicians and emergency services expressed anger at the lack of timely information during the crisis.

System Failure

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas criticised Optus for their incompetence in handling the situation.

The federal communications minister also condemned the company, highlighting that such failures are unacceptable.

The incident follows a previous outage for which Optus was fined $12 million, raising serious concerns about their emergency service handling.

News

Israel launches its new “Iron Beam” laser system

Israel’s new “Iron Beam” laser defense system to deploy by year-end, promising cost-effective missile interception.

Published

1 day ago

September 19, 2025

ticker NEWS

Israel’s new “Iron Beam” laser defense system to deploy by year-end, promising cost-effective missile interception.

Israel’s Defence Ministry says its new “Iron Beam” laser system will be deployed by year’s end. The technology is designed to destroy incoming missiles, rockets, drones and mortars with precision.

Developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems in partnership with Elbit Systems, Iron Beam will sit alongside existing defences such as Iron Dome, David’s Sling and Arrow. Unlike traditional interceptors which can cost tens of thousands of dollars per shot, the laser comes at negligible expense.

Officials call it the world’s first high-power laser interception system to achieve operational maturity, hailing it as a game-changer for modern warfare. Military leaders expect the system to reshape air defence capabilities and cut costs dramatically.

#Israel #Defence #LaserWeapons #TickerNews

News

Stephen Colbert’s opening monologue on Jimmy Kimmel

Stephen Colbert condemns censorship and calls out Trump in powerful monologue dedicated to Jimmy Kimmel’s suspended show.

Published

1 day ago

September 19, 2025

ticker NEWS

Stephen Colbert condemns censorship and calls out Trump in powerful monologue dedicated to Jimmy Kimmel’s suspended show.

Stephen Colbert’s opening monologue is being hailed as one of the most powerful moments in modern late-night history. Standing on stage at the Ed Sullivan Theatre, Colbert dedicated his show to Jimmy Kimmel and his team after ABC suspended Kimmel’s programme under pressure from Washington.

Colbert called the move “blatant censorship” and directly accused President Trump of acting like an autocrat. “With an autocrat, you cannot give an inch,” he warned, making clear that the stakes reach far beyond late-night comedy.

#StephenColbert #JimmyKimmel #FreeSpeech #TickerNews