The Dispatch

Germany considers delaying second COVID-19 vaccine shot

Germany was weighing on Monday whether to allow a delay in administering a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine from BioNTech and Pfizer to make scarce supplies go further, after…

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Norway imposes new restrictions to prevent new wave, says PM

OSLO (Reuters) -Norway will impose fresh restrictions to prevent a resurgence in the spread of the coronavirus, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said on Sunday, including a nationwide ban on serving…

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Four bodies recovered after Norway’s landslide

Euronews - Rescue teams continued the search for survivors in Norway on Saturday, four days after a landslide carried homes down a hill in a village northeast of Oslo. Four…

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Victims increase in Norwegian landslide tragedy

Rescuers found one body on Friday, two days after a landslide in southern Norway swept away at least nine buildings, police said, with nine people still missing. Another 10 people…

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Sweden closes 45-year old Ringhals 1 nuclear reactor

The Swedish nuclear unit Ringhals 1 (880 megawatt) will shut permanently on Thursday after 45 years of operation, leaving the Nordic country with six nuclear reactors. Ringhals 1, a boiling…

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Photo Story: The traditional snow lanterns in Finland

A woman puts a candle inside a lantern built of snowballs in Lahti, Finland. A traditional Finnish snow decoration is used as an outdoor lantern all over the country. Via…

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Photo Story: Rescue operations continue after large landslide in Norway

A rescue helicopter over the landslide site in Ask, Norway, early 31 December 2020. The search for the missing continues as several homes were taken by a large landslide and…

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10 hurt, 21 unaccounted for as landslide hits residential area in Norway

OSLO (Reuters) - Ten people were injured, one of them critically, and 21 people remained unaccounted for after a landslide in southern Norway swept away more than a dozen buildings…

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Denmark to extend lockdown measures until Jan. 17 – TV2

COPENHAGEN, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Denmark's government will extend a hard lockdown for two weeks until Jan. 17 to limit the spread of COVID-19, broadcaster TV2 reported on Tuesday citing…

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Norway and Jordan confirm new Covid variant cases

The new variant of the coronavirus circulating in Britain has been detected in Norway and Jordan, as the two countries health authorities confirmed the variant in cases which concerned people…

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Photo Story: First Danes get vaccinated against COVID-19

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reacts as Jytte Margrete Frederiksen (83) is being vaccinated against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Ishoej, Denmark, 27 December 2020. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen…

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Spain and Sweden detect first new-coronavirus strain cases

CDE / Reuters / Euronews - France, Spain and Sweden detected their first cases of the new coronavirus strain that prompted fresh lockdown measures in Britain and global travel bans,…

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Finland receives over 5,000 applications in scheme for foreign tech workers relocation

The Guardian - Finland has received more than 5,300 applications in a month for a groundbreaking scheme offering foreign tech workers and their families the chance to relocate to the…

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Photo Story: The Gingerbread town in Bergen, Norway

The annual pre-Christmas tradition, opening of the Gingerbread Town in Bergen, took place in Bergen, Norway. Miniature houses, trains, cars and ships are made from real gingerbread. Schools and kindergartens…

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Nord Stream 2 to start laying gas pipes in Danish waters

The Russia-led Nord Stream 2 consortium is expected to start laying gas pipes in Danish waters after construction was suspended for a year owing to the threat of sanctions from…

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Norway extends ban on flights from Britain by at least three days

The ban on flights from Britain to Norway will be extended by at least three more days due to ongoing concerns over a mutated strain of coronavirus, the Norwegian health…

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Denmark bans mink breeding

Denmark agreed on a temporary ban on mink breeding, leaving little hope to rebuild the industry, which pioneered the global fur trade. Fearing an escalation of the coronavirus epidemic in the Nordic country,…

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Norway halts flights from Britain

Flights from Britain to Norway will be suspended with immediate effect for a minimum of 48 hours due to concerns over a new strain of coronavirus, the Norwegian health minister…

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Denmark to halt flights from Britain on Monday morning

Flights from Britain to Denmark will be suspended for 48 hours starting Monday at 0900 GMT to limit the spread of a new strain of coronavirus, the country's transport minister…

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Denmark to dig up millions of mink from mass graves

COPENHAGEN, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Millions of mink will be dug up from mass graves in Denmark after some had resurfaced, prompting complaints from residents about possible health risks, the…

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Sweden introduces toughest anti Covid measures yet as cases soar

Sweden introduced its toughest measures yet in the face of soaring COVID-19 infections, including a recommendation to wear masks at peak hours on public transport, but stopped short of ordering…

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Denmark strengthens rape laws, outlaws sex without explicit consent

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Denmark strengthened its rape laws on Thursday by criminalising sex without explicit consent. The new law passed by parliament widened the circumstances that could constitute rape -…

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Sweden’s king says ‘we have failed’ over COVID-19, as deaths mount

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's king said his country had failed in its handling of COVID-19, in a sharp criticism of a pandemic policy partly blamed for a high death toll…

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Denmark will shut down completely during Christmas, New Year – PM

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Denmark will impose a hard lockdown over Christmas and the New Year to limit the spread of COVID-19, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Wednesday. Shopping malls…

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Nokia says margins at networks business will be zero in 2021

Telecoms equipment maker Nokia's operating margins at its networks business will be zero in 2021, it said on Wednesday in an update on strategy to streamline the Finnish company into…

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Finland plans to help Finnair with 400 million euro loan

Finland is preparing to support national carrier Finnair with an unsecured hybrid loan of up to 400 million euros ($486 million), the company said on Wednesday. The Finnish government said…

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Inquiry concludes Sweden failed to protect elderly in COVID pandemic

Systemic shortcomings in Sweden’s elderly care coupled with inadequate measures from the government and agencies contributed to the country’s high death toll in nursing homes, an initial report by an…

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Photo Story: Waste bins for disposable face masks in Denmark

Pedestrians pass a waste bin for disposable face masks, in Aarhus Center, Denmark. Aarhus Municipality are placing one hundred waste bins for disposable face masks. The buckets have a clamped…

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Norway says it could block EU, British fishing vessels from Jan 1

Norway may stop British and EU vessels fishing in its waters from Jan. 1, its fisheries minister said, as talks on the management of common North Sea stocks have been…

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EPA’s Eye in the Sky: Enkoping, Sweden

An 'island' of trees with autumn coloured leaves in a field that cast a shadow on a sunny day outside Enkoping, Sweden. Via EPA-EFE/Fredrik Sandberg SWEDEN OUT

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Finland’s economic slump among the mildest of OECD countries, says OECD

The Finnish economy will shrink by 3.3% this year and recover only gradually, but swift government support has cushioned the shock, making for a smaller output drop than in many…

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Denmark to widen tight lockdown measures to more municipalities

Denmark's government will expand tighter lockdown measures currently in place in 38 municipalities to around 30 new municipalities, broadcaster TV2 reported on Thursday, citing anonymous sources. On Monday, the government…

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Stockholm appeals for help as COVID fills intensive care wards

The head of Stockholm’s health service appealed to national authorities to send specialist nurses and other hospital staff as it struggles to cope with a second wave of COVID infections…

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Norway softens rules on quarantine for travellers from abroad

OSLO (Reuters) -Travellers to Norway will be able to undergo a mandatory ten-day quarantine in a place of their choosing if they can document that they can respect quarantine conditions,…

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Majority in Swedish parliament backs ‘NATO option’ after Sweden Democrats shift

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - A Swedish parliamentary majority in favour of readiness to join NATO as a possible security policy option has emerged for the first time after the far-right Sweden…

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Activist editor – Greta Thunberg

A copy of the 06 December 2020 issue of Swedish daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter sits on a table in Stockholm, Sweden, 06 December 2020. The 06 December 2020 issue had…

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Norway to use three vaccines to stop COVID-19 from early 2021

OSLO (Reuters) - Norway plans to use the three vaccines developed by Moderna, AstraZeneca, Pfizer and BioNTech in its first push to inoculate its population against COVID-19, the country's health…

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Finland to vaccinate its population for free against COVID-19

Finland's government said on Thursday it had agreed a national strategy for COVID-19 vaccinations, planning to give them to everyone and to begin with vaccinating selected healthcare staff from January…

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Photo Story: 8,400 years old dog remains found in Sweden

A Stone Age dog in Blekinge Museum's in Karlskrona in south of Sweden. The approximately 8,400-year-old dog, that was found in September at the archaeological excavations in Ljungaviken outside Solvesborg,…

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Sweden sidelines epidemiologist who steered country’s no lockdown experiment as deaths rise

The high-profile epidemiologist who led Sweden's no lock-down strategy in the spring appears to be being sidelined by the government after his prediction that greater immunity would mean a lighter…

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Denmark wants to dig up ‘zombie mink’ that resurfaced from mass graves

Denmark's government said on Friday it wants to dig up mink that were culled to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, after some resurfaced from mass graves. Denmark ordered all…

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Surge in coronavirus infections can affect financial stability, Swedish FSA says

The second wave of COVID-19 that has hit Europe will dampen economic recovery and could affect financial stability in the longer term, Sweden’s Financial Supervisory Authority said. It said the…

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Danske lays off 257 employees in cost-cutting plan

Danske Bank on Thursday laid off 257 employees and granted another 261 a voluntary redundancy agreement as the lender continues previously announced plans to cut up to 1,600 jobs. "We…

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Finland’s COVID-19 situation worsening rapidly, Norway to keep virus restrictions until mid-December

Finland's COVID-19 situation has worsened rapidly in recent days, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Thursday, though she added that the government had decided it did not yet have the…

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Photo story: Christmas lights lit in Lundhusvej, in Vejle, Denmark

A series of photos from the street of Lundhusvej, in the suburbs of Vejle, Denmark, which once more light up over the weekend, with Christmas lights. Via EPA-EFE/Michael Drost-Hansen

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Finnish ferry towed to quay after running aground in Baltic

A passenger ferry with more than 400 people on board was towed to quay early on Sunday, the day after it ran aground in the Aland Islands, a Finnish archipelago in…

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Norwegian Air seeks bankruptcy protection

Norwegian Air has asked an Irish court to oversee a restructuring of its massive debt as it seeks to stave off collapse amid the coronavirus pandemic, the budget airline said…

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UPDATED: Mutated coronavirus from mink in Denmark most likely extinct, health ministry says

A new, mutated strain of the novel coronavirus stemming from mink farms in Denmark is "most likely" extinct, the health ministry said on Thursday, amid fears the new strain could…

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Sweden to allow more distance learning at high schools as COVID cases rise

Sweden’s high schools will be able to conduct more distance learning from next week to help control the pandemic, the government said , though it encouraged them to remain open…

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Maersk confident as looks to U.S.-led shipping recovery

Shipping group Maersk said on Wednesday positive momentum in global trade allowed it to look confidently beyond 2020 and it would initiate a share buy-back programme of around $1.6 billion.…

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Is Europe about to face a bird-flu outbreak?

CDE.NEWS has been following a recent spike in reported cases of bird-flu across Europe. Denmark has ordered 25,000 chickens to be culled after finding H5N8 bird flu on a farm,…

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Surge in Covid cases in Sweden dashes immunity hopes

Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter reports that authorities in Sweden are currently investigating 150 cases of a recurrence of coronavirus, although, the paper reports, “there are many indications that even those…

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Coronavirus times: Santa Claus in a restrictive bubble

Photo: Santa Claus in a life size snow ball made of plastic as a safety measure against coronavirus in Aalborg zoo, 13 November 2020. Christmas decorations and lightings have adorned…

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Second wave, same strategy: Swedish COVID-19 czar defiant despite surge

Sweden remains steadfast in its strategy of voluntary measures and no lockdowns, the architect of its unorthodox COVID-19 response said on Friday, as the country battles a growing second wave…

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Stockholm rushes to stem nursing home COVID surge with visit ban, quick tests

Stockholm is scrambling to curb COVID-19 infections at its nursing homes, reimposing a ban on visits and piloting rapid-result coronavirus testing of staff. Sweden’s nursing homes, particularly in the capital,…

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Mink cull puts Denmark’s government in legal pinch

The Danish government put forward hastily drawn up legislation on Tuesday to back up its order to cull all the country's farmed mink, admitting it lacked the legal basis for…

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EPA’s Eye in the Sky: Fyn island, Denmark

Morning fog in Kvaerndrup, Fyn island, Denmark. Via EPA-EFE/Michael Bager

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