Britain will this week begin offering vaccinations to children aged between five and 11 who are most at risk from coronavirus, the state-run National Health Service said on Sunday.
Britain has been slower than some other countries in offering the shots to 5-11 year olds, and is not planning to vaccinate the age group more broadly unlike countries such as the United States and Israel.
NHS England said children in the cohort who were in a clinical risk group or who live with someone who is immunosuppressed would be able to get a first COVID-19 shot, in line with advice issued last month by the Joint Committee on Vaccine and Immunisation (JCVI).
"I would like parents and guardians to be reassured that no new vaccine for children would have been approved unless the expected standards of safety, quality and effectiveness had been met," UK vaccines minister Maggie Throup said.
"I encourage as many as possible to make sure they get their child the jab when contacted."
Children will be offered two 10 microgram doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot, which is a third of an adult dose.
Infections are currently high among school children in England, with the Office for National Statistics estimating that nearly 12 per cent of younger school pupils had coronavirus in the week ending January 22.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday, the first stop in a broader trip to the Middle East to discuss issues including the governance of Gaza once the war with Israel ends.
Scotland's first minister Humza Yousaf is expected to resign later on Monday, British media reported, after the possibility of him winning a vote of confidence this week appeared to dwindle over the weekend.
At least 42 people have been killed in floods in central Kenya's Mai Mahiu area after a dam burst early on Monday, and the number of deaths could rise, police said.
The Philippines cancelled in-person sessions in public schools for two days from Monday, warning that the power grid on its main island of Luzon could be strained in a heatwave that is also broiling other parts of Southeast Asia.
The World Central Kitchen has announced its resumption of operations in the Gaza Strip, four weeks after seven of its employees were killed in an Israeli air attack.
At least four people died, including a four-month-old baby, and scores were injured in Oklahoma this weekend after dozens of twisters swept the US Southern Plains, while weather alerts on Sunday put more than 7 million Americans under tornado warnings.
Pope Francis offered encouragement to prisoners, artists and young people in Venice on Sunday, with his first trip of the year testing his mobility and resilience after a number of health scares in recent months.
Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was taken to hospital in poor health his lawyer confirmed, just days after his 2020 conviction in New York was overturned.
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Welcome to Pinoy Bulletin, your go-to source for staying informed about important announcements, exciting group activities, community events, and job opportunities!
Welcome to Pinoy Bulletin, your go-to source for staying informed about important announcements, exciting group activities, community events, and job opportunities!