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world news Diaranson 30 December 2020

Iran begins first human trial of locally made virus vaccine

(AP) — The first study of month after the second shot. tremely aggressive timeline.
the safety and effective- Three people received the Before this year's fast-tracked
ness of a coronavirus vac- first injections on Tuesday in development of coronavirus
cine in Iran began Tues- a ceremony at a Tehran ho- vaccines, the usual methods
day, state TV reported, tel attended by the country's of testing a vaccine for safety
with dozens due to re- health minister. State TV an- and efficacy with mass trials
ceive the domestically de- nounced that none of the in- could take up to a decade.
veloped shot even as de- jections had so far caused any
tails about its production “fevers” or “bodily shocks.” With government-funded
remained slim. “I am happy that the scientific research into viral proteins
process went ahead in a prop- and genetics accelerating
The vaccine, the first in the er way,” said Tayebeh Mokh- the development of vaccines
country to reach human tri- ber, daughter of the Setad worldwide, countries have
als, is produced by Shifa Foundation chairman, who approved vaccines for emer-
Pharmed, part of a state- was the first to get jabbed. “I gency use and launched inoc-
owned pharmaceutical con- hope the conclusion will be ulation programs at record-
glomerate known as Barekat. health for our people.” breaking speed.
The company's website de- produce another vaccine ex-
scribes it as involved in the The Setad Foundation, con- American drug makers Pfizer pected to run in tests in hu- Still, Iran retains routes to
large-scale production of an- trolled by the office of Iran’s and Moderna received en- man volunteers in February, imported vaccines, including
tibiotics and penicillin, with- supreme leader, oversees the dorsements after reporting without offering further de- through COVAX, an interna-
out offering any details about Barekat conglomerate. their vaccines were more tails. tional program designed to
its coronavirus research, re- than 90% effective at protect- distribute coronavirus vac-
sults of animal trials or pre- The treatment, dubbed Co- ing against the coronavirus in The government has touted cines to participating coun-
vious vaccine development viran, is a so-called inacti- large, advanced clinical trials. Iran's domestic vaccine re- tries around the world.
since its founding in 1995. vated vaccine, meaning it is China and Russia approved search, repeatedly alleging
made of a coronavirus that's their vaccines for emergency that tough American sanc- Iran’s energy minister, Reza
Iran has struggled to stem the been weakened or killed by use while still in late-stage tions undermine efforts to Ardakanian, told state news
worst virus outbreak in the chemicals, similar to how po- testing. Their early interim purchase foreign-made vac- agency IRNA on Tuesday
region, which has infected lio immunizations are made. data, although promising, cines and launch mass inocu- during a visit to Baghdad that
over 1.2 million people and Leading Western vaccines, lacks clarity and raises ques- lation campaigns like those Iran will pay for the COVAX
killed nearly 55,000. like the shot made by Pfizer tions about vaccine efficacy. underway in the U.S. and vaccines from some $6 bil-
and its German partner Bi- Europe. While U.S. sanctions lion that Iraq owes Iran for
The study, a Phase 1 clini- oNTech, use newer, less- Iran has not elaborated on its do have specific carve-outs gas imports over the years.
cal trial, will enroll a total of proven technology to target regulatory approval process for medicine and humanitar-
56 volunteers to receive two the coronavirus’ spike pro- or plans for more advanced ian aid to Iran, international On Monday, Iran said it ex-
shots of the Iranian vaccine tein using RNA. trials. banks and financial institu- pects a group of U.S.-based
within two weeks, according tions hesitate in dealing with benefactors to ship thousands
to Hamed Hosseini, a clini- Iranian authorities expect President Hassan Rouhani Iranian transactions for fear of Pfizer coronavirus vac-
cal trial manager. Results are the vaccine to hit the market has said Iran is cooperating of being fined or locked out cines in the coming weeks.
to be announced roughly a by late spring 2021, an ex- with a “foreign country” to of the American market.

Russian monk charged with inciting suicidal acts in sermons

(AP) — Russian riot po- where a court approved his its existence and denounced Church stripped Father Ser- nounced alleged plots of the
lice stormed into a mon- arrest. Authorities charged government efforts to stem giy of his abbot’s rank for “world government” and
astery Tuesday to detain a him with inciting suicidal the pandemic as “Satan’s breaking monastic rules in glorified Russia’s last czar,
rebel monk who has casti- actions through sermons in electronic camp.” He has de- July, but he rejected the rul- Nicholas II, who was killed
gated the Kremlin and the which he urged believers to scribed the vaccines being de- ing and ignored police inves- by the Bolsheviks along with
Russian Orthodox Church “die for Russia.” He denied veloped against COVID-19 tigators’ summons. Facing his entire family in Yekaterin-
leadership and denied the the accusations. as part of a global plot to con- stiff resistance by hundreds burg in 1918.
existence of the coronavi- trol the masses via chips. of his supporters, church of-
rus. Russia's top investigative ficials and local authorities Father Sergiy has been the
agency, the Investigative The monk, who has urged appeared reluctant to evict most visible and outspoken
In the overnight show- Committee, said Father Ser- followers to disobey the gov- him for months. of a few ultra-conservative
down, police clashed with giy also faces other criminal ernment’s lockdown mea- Hundreds of his support- clerics who have challenged
the priest's supporters at charges related to his alleg- sures, had holed up at the ers continued rallying at the the leadership of the Russian
the Sredneuralsk monastery edly arbitrary action to take monastery near Yekaterin- monastery hours after he was Orthodox Church. Observ-
outside Yekaterinburg in the control of the monastery. burg he founded years ago. taken away. Some wept. ers have said the monk’s re-
Ural Mountains. Dozens of burly volunteers, bellious actions and now his
When the virus arrived in including veterans of the Father Sergiy, who was born detention undermine the au-
The monk, Father Sergiy, was Russia early this year, the separatist conflict in eastern as Nikolai Romanov, served thority of Patriarch Kirill.
quickly flown to Moscow, 65-year-old monk denied Ukraine, helped enforce his as a police officer during So-
rules, while the prioress and viet times. After leaving the In another sign of internal
several nuns left. ranks of law enforcement, tensions within the church,
The monk chastised Russian he was convicted of murder, an ecclesiastical panel ruled
President Vladimir Putin as a robbery and assault and sen- Tuesday to defrock a liberal-
“traitor to the Motherland” tenced to 13 years in prison, leaning theologian, Proto-
who was serving a Satanic He joined a church school deacon Andrei Kurayev, who
“world government.” He also after his release and later be- has been active in expressing
denounced the head of the came a monk. his views online. Kurayev la-
Russian Orthodox Church, mented the verdict as a pun-
Patriarch Kirill, and other The charismatic priest quick- ishment for sharing opinions
top clerics as “heretics” who ly became known for his ef- that sometimes differed from
must be “thrown out.” forts to open new churches official stance of the Moscow
and monasteries in the Urals. Patriarchate.
The Russian Orthodox In his fiery sermons, he de-