A federal advisory panel has discussed ways to simplify and routinize COVID-19 vaccines, more than two years after the first shots became available. Also in the news: The National Archives has requested former officials look for any classified documents they might have. It’s the last weekend of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
🙋🏼♀️ I’m Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. So no one’s been drunk on the ski lift this whole time?
Now, here we go with Friday’s news.
With vaccines and boosters authorized incrementally for different COVID-19 vaccines and different age groups as the SARS-CoV-2 virus continued to evolve, there are now more than a dozen vaccines and schedules, the Food and Drug Administration’s Dr. David Kaslow said in a panel meeting Thursday. The FDA hopes to simplify vaccine options and provide a process for updating the shots at least once a year to cope with the continued presence and evolution of SARS-CoV-2. The committee took only one formal vote Thursday, unanimously supporting a shift to a consistent vaccine target, regardless of how many shots a person has had. Read more
Palestinian militants fired rockets and Israel carried out airstrikes as tensions soared following an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank. The raid killed nine Palestinians, including at least seven militants and a 61-year-old woman. It was the deadliest single incursion in the territory in over two decades. The flare-up in violence poses an early test for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government and casts a shadow on U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s expected trip to the region next week. Palestinian militants fired five rockets at Israel, which carried out a series of airstrikes at what it said were militant targets. There were no immediate reports of casualties. Read our latest reporting on Israel.
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Faced with a steady stream of disclosures about improperly kept classified documents, the National Archives on Thursday asked former presidents and vice presidents to look for any sensitive and potentially top-secret material they might have, according to a source familiar with the matter.
One thing to know: In its letter, the archives is asking all former presidents and vice presidents dating back to the Ronald Reagan administration to re-examine their files.
Former Memphis police officers Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Justin Smith, Emmit Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr. have each been charged with one count of second-degree murder, aggravated assault – acting in concert, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, two counts of official misconduct and one count of official oppression, court records show. The charges come less than a week after the officers were fired and accused of violating department policy during the stop of Tyre Nichols, 29. Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis called the incident “heinous, reckless and inhumane” in a video statement Wednesday. Read more
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The International Olympic Committee is clearing the way for Russian athletes to compete at the Olympic Games despite that country’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine and the continuing brutality of its war against its neighbor. The IOC Executive Board agreed to allow individual athletes from Russia and its ally Belarus to take part in Olympic events if they are not “actively supporting” Russia’s war in Ukraine. The athletes also must compete under neutral status. “It is becoming increasingly clear that Russia has complete control over the IOC and its leadership,” Global Athlete said in a statement Wednesday, after the IOC announced it was pursuing ways to appease President Vladimir Putin and Russia. Read more
After going virtual for a couple of pandemic-affected editions, the Sundance Film Festival is back in Park City, Utah through Jan. 29. The indie films on tap are, as usual with the fest, a pretty interesting mix, from the Jonathan Majors bodybuilding drama “Magazine Dreams” to Daisy Ridley’s “Sometimes I Think About Dying” to a slate of documentaries featuring Judy Blume, Little Richard, Michael J. Fox and Brooke Shields. Read more
Click here to see more photos from Sundance 2023.
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Associated Press contributed reporting.
