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The European Parliament is suddenly without its next president. German Christian Democrat Manfred Weber relinquishes the presidency he promised during the hard-fought division of top Brussels jobs in 2019. That could clear the way for a Dutch candidate.   Weber was the first man from the Christian Democratic EPP in the 2019 European elections to head the European Commission, the executive board of the European Union. The Christian Democrats remained the largest party, but the EU heads of government subsequently passed 'Spitzenkandidat' Weber. Instead, they chose his compatriot Ursula von der Leyen, then Minister of Defence, as committee chair. Weber was given a prospect of the presidency of the European Parliament (EP) as a consolation. The Social Democrat who is now waving the ham...

The coronavirus could claim another 236,000 lives in Europe by December 1. Hans Kluge, the director of WHO Europe, made that bitter prediction in a press briefing. Our compatriot is also concerned about the stagnation of vaccination campaigns in European countries.   In some countries, the higher infection rates are 'particularly alarming', especially when combined with low vaccination rates. Of the 53 countries that are part of WHO Europe, 33 have seen the number of infections grow by more than 10 percent in the past two weeks. "This is very worrying, especially given the low vaccination coverage among high-risk groups in a number of countries." According to the director, fewer and fewer new people are being pricked. "In the past six weeks, the number of vaccinations has decrease...