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Benbruce
Protesters Detained In Belarus
Authorities in Belarus detained around 100 protesters on Sunday during a weekly anti-government march in Minsk, an Interior Ministry representative said in a statement.
Belarus, a country of 9.5 million, which Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election that veteran President Alexander Lukashenko said he won. His opponents say the vote was rigged and have been demanding his resignation.
Instead of coming together in one big march, as in the first months of the protests, demonstrators have increasingly adopted a different tactic, participating in multiple small-scale marches across the capital that start at staggered times throughout the day.
More than 30,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the start of the protests in August, according to opposition leaders.
Two female journalists were among those detained on Sunday, the Belarusian Association of Journalists said.
Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years. The European Union imposed travel bans and asset freezes on almost 50 Belarusian officials in protest over the election, which the West says was rigged, and over Lukashenko's crackdown on opponents.
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Benbruce
Germany To Start Vaccinating In December
German Health Minister Jens Spahn told Redaktions Netzwerk Deutschland Monday he had asked the country's 16 regional states to establish coronavirus immunization centers by mid-December, assuming European authorities approved the first vaccine.
"I'd rather have a ready-to-go immunization center that remains inactive for several days than a licensed vaccine that cannot be administered," the minister said, reiterating that vulnerable persons, such as the elderly, would be treated first.
Germany has secured more than 300 million vaccine doses via the European Commission under bilateral contracts and options, Spahn estimated.
"Even with two doses per immunization [of an individual] we would have enough for [Germany's] own population and could share with other countries," Spahn forecast.
