Europe - The African Mirror

Mar

2022

A tale of two refugee crises

RACHAEL REILLY and MICHAEL FLYNN RUSSIA's brutal and devastating invasion of Ukraine has triggered the largest and fastest refugee movement in Europe since World War II. After only a single week, more than one million people had already fled the country. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) initially predicted that as many as four million people would flee; the UN now thinks that some 10 million will eventually be displaced. While the EU calls this the largest humanitarian crisis that Europe has witnessed in “many, many years,” it is important to remember that it was not so long ago that the…

Dec

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Diplomats brought Omicron from Europe’

NEWS

BOTSWANA’S President Mokgweetsi Masisi said some of the four diplomats who first tested positive for the Omicron coronavirus variant in the country had come from Europe, calling for a reversal of widespread travel bans imposed against southern African countries. Omicron dubbed a variant of concern by the World Health Organization, has prompted many governments to impose curbs on travel from southern Africa and to take other measures to contain it. While it is still not established where Omicron first emerged, on November 25 South Africa, followed by Botswana a day later, announced they had detected a new variant whose mutations…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Growing eviction risk as rent freezes end in Europe

HEALTH

ARTHUR NELSEN MILLIONS of European households may have to leave their homes in the coming months because they cannot afford to pay rent, housing experts say, as pandemic-related rent moratoriums wind down across the continent. Housing Europe, a Brussels-based social housing association, estimates that 10 million households are at risk, based on their analysis of a survey of 180,000 people across the 27 EU nations by Eurofound, which seeks to improve living and working conditions in the bloc. The U.N. special rapporteur on adequate housing, Balakrishnan Rajagopal, described that figure as "a rather conservative estimate ... given the high percentage…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

COVID-19 chaos looms over World Cup qualifiers

SPORT

SIMON EVANS NEXT week's World Cup qualifying games in Europe and beyond are set to be heavily affected by clubs refusing to release players for international duty, COVID-19 quarantines and travel restrictions. Inter Milan announced on Thursday that all of their players will be pulled out of international duty after two more positive COVID-19 cases at the club. German Bundesliga clubs are unlikely to release Austrian players for their country's qualifier in Scotland on March 25 although the game is scheduled to go ahead with the visitors fielding a weakened side. French Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 clubs will not…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

W.H.O envoy fears third wave, calls Europe response to COVID-19 ‘incomplete’

COVID-19

A World Health Organization (WHO) special COVID-19 envoy predicted a third wave of the pandemic in Europe in early 2021 if governments repeat what he said was a failure to do what was needed to prevent the second wave of infections. "They missed building up the necessary infrastructure during the summer months after they brought the first wave under the control," the WHO's David Nabarro said in an interview with Swiss newspapers. "Now we have the second wave. If they don't build the necessary infrastructure, we'll have a third wave early next year," said Nabarro, a Briton who campaigned unsuccessfully…