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W.H.O: COVID variants will now be renamed to avoid “stigmatizing”

Published

5 years ago

June 1, 2021

The World Health Organization has said it will rename COVID-19 variants to avoid stigmatization of countries where new strains of the virus are first reported.

The new system applies to variant of concerns – the most troubling of which four are in circulation.

“While they have their advantages, these scientific names can be difficult to say and recall, and are prone to misreporting,” the WHO says in a statement.

#COVID19 does not care who we are, where we live, or what we believe.

Yet the pandemic continues to unleash a tsunami of hate and xenophobia, scapegoating and scare-mongering.

That’s why I’m appealing for an all-out effort to end hate speech globally. pic.twitter.com/ojh957xhQq
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) May 8, 2020

The new names:

The four coronavirus variants considered of concern by the United Nations agency and known generally by the public as the UK, South Africa, Brazil and India

Under a new system revealed by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Kent variant will now be known as Alpha, the Indian variant as Delta, and the South African variant as Beta.

Their scientific names – B.1.1.7, B.1.617.2 and B.1.351 – had been considered too complicated to remember, but there were also concerns about referring to them by the locations where they were discovered.

Critics have warned the current format can stigmatise countries where variants are first found.

Some have warned the rise in coverage of the so-called Indian variant as it becomes more widespread could fuel racism against Indian people.

In 2020, due to the fact that COVID-19 originated in China, experts say it led to an inc rease in hate crimes against Asian people.

Former US president Donald Trump was condemned for regularly referring to coronavirus as the “China virus”, among other such labels.

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Iran live updates: Trump Says Iran strikes to continue for four to five weeks

Published

23 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Ahron Young

What’s happening in the Middle East?

President Donald Trump says Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been killed, with Iran now entering a transitional period under a three man leadership council
Trump says U.S. strikes on Iran could last four to five weeks, outlining objectives including destroying missile capabilities, dismantling Iran’s navy and preventing it from obtaining a nuclear weapon
The U.S. military confirms four American service members have been killed, and the White House says U.S. forces have destroyed and sunk nine Iranian naval ships
Iran says it sees “no limit” to its right to self defence and will not negotiate, as missile and drone attacks continue across Israel and Gulf states
More than 500 Iranians have been killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes, with additional deaths reported in Lebanon, Israel and the UAE
Shipping, aviation and energy markets have been disrupted, Qatar has halted LNG production, UAE stock markets have closed temporarily, and oil and gas prices have surged

News

Israel strikes Tehran anew as conflict escalates and global markets react

Israel strikes Tehran after Khamenei’s death; U.S. warns of prolonged conflict as tensions escalate in the Middle East.

Published

23 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Harvey Vargas

Israel strikes Tehran after Khamenei’s death; U.S. warns of prolonged conflict as tensions escalate in the Middle East.

Israel has launched a new wave of strikes on Tehran, following the reported killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. U.S. President Donald Trump has warned the campaign could last up to a month, framing the operation as a move to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilities.

Iran has retaliated with missile attacks, while its Revolutionary Guards claim responsibility for assaults on oil tankers in the Gulf. The escalating hostilities are already disrupting global shipping lanes and air travel, sending shockwaves through international markets.

With reports of the first U.S. casualties emerging and Washington declaring the Tehran operation a success, tensions across the Middle East are intensifying rapidly. The question now is how far this conflict could spread — and at what cost.

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#Israel #Iran #Tehran #MiddleEastConflict #Geopolitics #OilMarkets #BreakingNews #GlobalSecurity

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U.S. and Israel strike Iran as missiles hit Gulf bases and oil surges

U.S. and Israel launch major military operation against Iran; tensions rise as conflict escalates, impacting global markets.

Published

2 days ago

March 1, 2026

Ahron Young

U.S. and Israel launch major military operation against Iran; tensions rise as conflict escalates, impacting global markets.

The United States and Israel have launched a sweeping military operation against Iran, striking leadership targets and more than 500 military sites in what President Trump has dubbed Operation Epic Fury.

Explosions have rocked Tehran, with civilians fleeing the capital as U.S. sea and air assets carry out sustained attacks. Washington says the mission is designed to prevent a nuclear armed Iran and has even called on Iranians to rise up against the regime.

Iran has retaliated with a barrage of missiles and drones targeting Israel and U.S. bases across the region, including in Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. While many projectiles were intercepted, a U.S. base in Bahrain sustained damage.

Gulf states long seen as stable hubs for global business are now directly in the firing line, raising fears of a wider regional war.

Oil prices are climbing and tankers are diverting from the Strait of Hormuz as markets react to the escalating conflict. U.S. aircraft carriers, advanced fighter jets and missile destroyers remain in position, signalling more strikes could follow.

With global leaders scrambling diplomatically, the world is watching to see whether this spirals further or shifts back to negotiations.