Europe

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain has detected 77 cases of the South African variant of COVID-19, the health minister said on Sunday, also urging people to strictly follow lockdown rules as the best precaution against Britain’s own potentially more deadly variant.

Matt Hancock said all 77 cases were connected to travel from South Africa and were under close observation, as were nine identified cases of a Brazilian variant.

LONDON (Reuters) - Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon accused British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday of fearing democracy when it comes to letting the Scottish people express their will on independence from the United Kingdom.

Scotland voted against independence by 55% to 45% in a 2014 referendum. But a majority of Scots also backed staying in the European Union in the subsequent 2016 Brexit vote, stoking demands by Scottish nationalists for a new independence vote after the UK as a whole voted to leave.

LONDON, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- London Mayor Sadiq Khan has called for tougher rules on wearing face coverings outside after revealing that more than 12,000 Londoners have died with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Evening Standard newspaper reported.

The mayor said there was a need for face coverings where people were "cheek by jowl" in outdoor locations, and revealed concerns at the number of Londoners in public places because the current lockdown rules were not tight enough.

MOSCOW, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Foreign Ministry blamed the U.S. Embassy in Moscow for interference in opposition rallies in Russia, which are the country's domestic affairs.

The U.S. Embassy has shown disregard for diplomatic rules and regulations by actively posting messages on social media in support of unsanctioned protests in Russian cities, the ministry said in a statement.

"We are talking about encouraging violent actions, hypocritically declared as peaceful protests, in which the organizers cynically involved even minors," the statement read.

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian police arrested more than 3,000 people Saturday in nationwide protests demanding the release of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the Kremlin’s most prominent foe, according to a group that counts political detentions.

The protests in scores of cities in temperatures as low as minus-50 C (minus-58 F) highlighted how Navalny has built influence far beyond the political and cultural centers of Moscow and St. Petersburg.

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Portugal held a presidential election Sunday, with the moderate incumbent candidate strongly favored to earn a second five-year term as a devastating COVID-19 surge grips the European Union nation.

The head of state in Portugal has no legislative powers, which lie with parliament and the government, but is an influential voice in the running of the country.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The unrelenting increase in COVID-19 infections in Spain following the holiday season is again straining hospitals, threatening the mental health of doctors and nurses who have been at the forefront of the pandemic for nearly a year.

In Barcelona’s Hospital del Mar, the critical care capacity has more than doubled and is nearly full, with 80% of ICU beds occupied by coronavirus patients.

LONDON (AP) — The Egyptians who took to the streets on Jan. 25, 2011, knew what they were doing. They knew they risked arrest and worse. But as their numbers swelled in Cairo’s central Tahrir Square, they tasted success.

Police forces backed off, and within days, former President Hosni Mubarak agreed to demands to step down.

23 Jan 2021; MEMO: Portuguese and Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo has turned down a multi-million advertising offer from the Saudi Arabia tourism authority. According to The Telegraph Sport, the football star was offered €6 million (£5.3m) annually to be the face of the Saudi Arabia as an attractive holiday destination.

London, Jan 23 (PTI) Early evidence suggests the variant of coronavirus that emerged in the UK towards the end of last year may be more deadly, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said.

Based on preliminary data briefing by scientists at the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (NERVTAG), Johnson admitted that it would seem the new variant was deadlier but stressed that the two vaccines being administered in the UK -- Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca -- are effective against all variants.