The number of first-time jobless claims for U.S. workers last week increased to 861,000, roughly 13,000 more than in the previous week, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
The European Union has urged Hungary to allow one of the nation’s last independent radio stations to continue after it was forced off-air on Monday.
President Biden’s vow to expand U.S. engagement with allies will be put to the test later this week when he participates in a virtual meeting with leaders of the world’s wealthiest democracies and then delivers remarks to the annual Munich Security Conference.
Germany’s Interior Ministry hired scientists to help create an atmosphere of fear to justify government-imposed lockdowns and other restrictive measures during the coronavirus pandemic, internal documents show, prompting outrage among opposition leaders.
Pope Francis urged world leaders to use the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to “rethink the relationship between individuals and the economy,” in his annual foreign policy address to the Holy See diplomatic corps on Monday.
Israel has a new political party committed solely to tackling what it says are “years of injustices” in the country’s Ministry of Health that have led to the current catastrophic handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, All Israel News reports. Offering policies that contradict the government’s extensive lockdown and other preventive measures, the “Rapeh” (Be Healthy) party is now listed for the March 2021 general election.
The economy will grow in 2021 at its fastest rate in 17 years as vaccines are administered across the country and life returns to normal, the Congressional Budget Office projected Monday.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday said that governments worldwide must do more to work together and put the global economy back on track.
In some of his first acts as president, Democrat Joe Biden rejoined the Paris climate agreement, despite warnings by the previous administration it cost billions and undermines America’s economy.
The incoming Biden administration will work toward the speedy passage of its $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan, Voice of America reports.
Outgoing U.S. President Donald J. Trump, who became the voice to millions feeling voiceless, has trumpeted his administration’s accomplishments and wished his successor luck.
Italy’s embattled Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte won a crucial Senate confidence vote Tuesday night, allowing him to keep his shaky coalition afloat.
Centrist Armin Laschet has pledged to heal divisions after being elected to lead Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) and perhaps succeed her as Germany’s chancellor.
Europe searched for effective leadership Saturday after the collapse of several governments and an expected tough election for Germany’s next chancellor.
The United States on Wednesday blacklisted two Iranian foundations controlled by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and their subsidies, saying the institutions enabled Iran’s elite to sustain a “corrupt” system of ownership over large parts of the economy.
President-elect Joe Biden is unveiling a $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan Thursday to turn the tide on the pandemic, speeding up the vaccine rollout and providing financial help to individuals, states and local governments and businesses struggling with the prolonged economic fallout.
The European Union has warned Iran that its decision to increase uranium enrichment could undermine efforts to keep a nuclear deal alive. The warning comes amid diplomatic efforts to bring the United States back on board under a new administration.
Israel’s Accountant General announced Monday that the country’s budget deficit for 2020 was $50.4 billion, the highest it has ever been and three times higher than it was in 2019, Ynet News reports. The record figure was largely anticipated in light of the economic devastation wrought during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, as a shipment of 700,000 Pfizer COVID vaccines arrived at Ben-Gurion International Airport, that the Pfizer vaccines would continue to arrive, with a “huge” shipment expected.
A Ninth Circuit judge Monday expressed concern that California’s effort to curb Covid-19 transmission by banning all indoor religious gatherings could extend into the summer months or beyond if the pandemic worsens, further restricting people’s constitutional right to practice their religion.