coronavirus

Orbán: Government working to avoid mandatory vaccination – update

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said he “would like to avoid” making coronavirus vaccination mandatory in Hungary.

Speaking at an international press conference on Tuesday, Orbán said that booster jabs were crucial, adding that whereas it would be “practical to make vaccination obligatory” as it is being discussed in other countries, “it would meet even greater resistance in the Hungarian cultural environment”.

“Convincing will get you closer to people’s minds and hearts than giving orders,”

he said, adding that the government will do everything to convince residents.

read also: Hungary surpasses 38,000 pandemic deaths

Vaccination of residents to continue

Orban told an international press briefing that booster jabs and the vaccination of the 5-11 age group were in the focus of the government’s Covid response measures.

He said

32 percent of the Hungarian population had now received a third shot, adding that the European average was 21.5 percent.

The prime minister highlighted the efforts of scientists across the world that resulted in providing vaccines against Covid. He expressed his sympathy with families in which the pandemic had claimed lives and wished a speedy recovery to those currently ill.

Orban noted that in 2021 the government had been able to turn to the use of vaccines and could abandon pandemic defence measures that were based on self-isolation. He said it had been clear to Hungary as early as the beginning of the year that only the vaccine would guarantee an effective defence against the pandemic.

“Everything else just allowed us to buy time, but victory can only be achieved with the help of the vaccine,” he said.

Orbán noted that Hungary had early on procured vaccines from multiple sources and had swiftly inoculated 5.5 million people, or 60 percent of its population against the virus.

“But we haven’t made much progress from there,”

he said, noting that a total of 6.2 million people had got the jab.

Meanwhile, he said the government had based its pandemic response and economic recovery measures on the findings of the National Consultation public surveys returned by more than 2 million people.

Read more news about Coronavirus in Hungary

Economic stimulus, protection against virus, protecting children main issues for 2022

Orban told the last government presser of 2021 that planned economic policy measures include such “serious experiments” as giving tax exemption to people under 25. Protection against the pandemic must continue because “we cannot expect the virus to leave us” in the first part of next year, he said. Protection will be focused on vaccination, he added.

Orbán said

some 2.4 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine were currently available and the government ordered an additional 2 million doses for children.

Based on information issued by the European Commission at last weekend’s EU summit, according to which a new vaccine would be required for the omicron variant, the government has ordered 9.5 million doses. These are scheduled to arrive in the second half of next year and in 2023, he added. Orbán said the shipment will also include 1.5 million doses for children.

read also: Israel bans travel to Hungary

Commenting on a planned referendum on protecting children, he said there was a debate about who should control and supervise the education of children and what exclusive rights parents should have.

“We reject the EU approach in this regard,”

he said, adding that similarly to the question of immigration, Hungarians will be given a chance to express their opinion at a referendum.

December 21, 2021

Hungary surpasses 38,000 pandemic deaths

Altogether 132 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours in Hungary, while 1,985 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Tuesday.

So far 6,232,575 people have received a first jab, while 5,945,349 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 3,114,011 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 138,069, while

hospitals are treating 5,527 Covid-19 patients, 501 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 1,230,385 infections have been registered, while

the number of fatalities has risen to 38,028.

Fully 1,054,288 people have made a recovery.

There are 31,543 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 9,021,858.

Read alsoOmicron to ravage Hungary soon?

December 21, 2021

Israel bans travel to Hungary

Besides other nine countries, Israel bans travel to Hungary from the 22nd of December due to high infection rates and rising Omicron cases.

As a result of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant and the ever-increasing number of infections worldwide, Israel has introduced new travel restrictions. Visits by Israelis to South Africa and the vast majority of African countries have been already banned in early December. Not long after that, nine other countries – the UK, Denmark, France, Spain, Ireland, Norway, Finland, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates were added to the “red” list, with travel bans already in effect from midnight on Sunday.

On Sunday, the Ministry of Health proposed that 10 more countries should be added to the high-risk areas from the 22nd of December due to their high infection rates. Accordingly, Israel bans travel to the following countries:

the United States, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Portugal, Switzerland, Turkey as well as Hungary.

The decision was made based on data examined by Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett who predicts a “significant outbreak” in Israel within three weeks. The peak of the wave is expected to exceed the fourth wave caused by the Delta variant which began in June. In addition to the recently annunced travel restrictions, the Prime Minister urged employers to re-introduce work-from-home arrangements as soon as possible.

On Sunday, the Ministry of Health announced that 40 more people had been identified as Omicron carrier. Following that, the number of Omicron infections has increased to 175 in Israel. The majority of the patients either got infected abroad or were in contact with people who transmitted the virus outside of the country. Meanwhile, 17 new carriers got infected in the local community. The only good news is that, so far, there has been only one seriously hospitalised Omicron patient in Israel, who happened to be a non-vaccinated person.

As the Hungarian news portal Turizmus.com reports, Israelis returning from the banned states will be taken to a designated hotel at the airport. Passengers are obliged to stay in mandatory quarantine until their first test results are received at the airport. If their test is negative, they can return home where they must remain in quarantine for seven days even if they have received all the three doses of the vaccine. They can only leave their home once a negative test is produced. Israelis arriving from the high-risk areas will be subject to a three-day home quarantine which lasts until the second negative test result. So far, the new restrictions are in effect until 29th December.

The countries mentioned above on the high-risk “red” list can only be visited with exceptional permission given by a government committee.

Hungary

After the increasing number of Israeli tourists visiting Hungary this summer, a significant decline is expected in December. Thanks to the expanding number of flights between Budapest and Tel Aviv, the planes mainly carried Israeli tourists and dual citizens until the end of October, flying with an average load factor of over 80% since the restart. However, this new travel restriction, as well as the presumably negative evolution of the epidemiological situation in Hungary might cause a dramatic decrease in the number of visitors.

budapest-metro-undergound railway-bkk-bkv 2

Read alsoOmicron to ravage Hungary soon?

December 21, 2021

Here are the latest COVID-19 numbers from Hungary – Dec 20, 2021

Altogether 366 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the weekend, while 10,105 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Monday.

So far 6,226,399 people have received a first jab, while 5,937,305 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 3,104,194 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 141,871, while

hospitals are treating 5,537 Covid-19 patients, 503 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 1,228,400 infections have been registered, while

the number of fatalities has risen to 37,896.

Fully 1,048,633 people have made a recovery.

There are 33,383 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 9,014,430.

read more news about Coronavirus in Hungary

Read alsoSelling Fake vaccine certificates is a booming business in Hungary – VIDEO

December 20, 2021

Omicron to ravage Hungary soon?

The latest version of the coronavirus, the Omicron variant has already been detected in Hungary. It is still unknown though how much danger this latest variant will pose to the population. A Hungarian university professor presents the projected situation by using a foreign example.

New study on the Omicron variant

The Omicron variant has been detected in Hungary. Gábor Vattay, the head of the Department of Physics of Complex Systems at Eötvös Loránd University, shared his predictions regarding the Hungarian viral situation. “We can now estimate the extent of the Omicron variant’s presence in the country after the new variant has been identified in Hungary,” Vattay began his analysis.

It is still unclear which virus variant is the most dominant in the country.

In order to get a closer understanding, Vattay examined international data to predict the rate of the future domestic cases, writes portfolio.hu. The international figures demonstrate how fast the Omicron variant spreads after its first appearance. In Denmark, they have been monitoring closely the pace of the viral mutation’s spread.

In Denmark, 13 pc of all coronavirus cases are currently Omicron variants.

“It is estimated that Omicron cases will reach 50 pc by Tuesday. And by Christmas, virtually all Danish cases will be Omicron,” Vattay concluded his analysis.

What will the future hold?

In the Danish cases, a very steep rise can be observed. A similar trend can be seen in the UK as well. With a prevalence of about 5-10 pc, there is a sharp increase in the number of cases per day. In the case of Hungary, we cannot yet experience this leap.

The Omicron variant may be below 5 pc in Hungary.

However, two cases have already been reported in Hungary when the infected people did not spend time abroad. Taken this into consideration, we can conclude that the latest variant of the virus has started spreading in Hungary as well. “Since the Omicron infections double every 3 days, disease rates rise rapidly which should be visible on the daily case count curves within the next three weeks,” the expert believes.

It would be important to estimate an exact proportion by sampling. This would allow to construct a more realistic epidemic curve and draw a more accurate conclusion. Currently, the Delta virus variant is the most common in Hungary, writes felvidek.ma. However, that may change soon.

December 16, 2021

Tragic! Many children with Covid-19 are in intensive care

The pandemic is affecting children more seriously than many people would assume.

Surviving the pandemic seems to be easier for those who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus. They can somewhat get back to a sense of normality without the numerous restrictions. Others are looking at the situation from another perspective, thinking not only about their freedom but also about the protection and safety of others. There are people, however, who are anti-vax or simply wait for another vaccine to be available, such as Novavax. But there is one demographic that is not often mentioned in the discussions about the pandemic, a demographic that many people thought were protected against the virus.

While there is a misinformation that children do not get infected with the virus, the truth is far from it. Many children with Covid-19 were taken to intensive care and put on ventilators. There were 100 children with Covid-19 in intensive care during the third wave of the pandemic. Many of these young patients are under the age of 10. If they survive and recover, they will be protected against the virus for only half a year.

Fifty children with Covid-19 were taken to the Heim Pal Children’s Hospital since January. The chief medical officer of the hospital told RTL that even healthy children can get the virus and badly suffer from the consequences.

Currently, Pfizer is the only vaccine that can be administered to children. Portfolio writes that 69,000 doses of the vaccine suitable for children aged between 5 and 11 have arrived to Hungary. One hundred cars started delivering the vaccines at 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

The first doses arrived at the Heim Pál Children’s Hospital in Budapest. The hospital functions as a logistic center. They received 600 vaccines, out of which 342 would be taken to Semmelweis University, Dél-pesti Centrumkórház (South Pest Central Hospital), and Szent János Hospital. The vaccines that arrived in Budapest are sufficient for 36,000 children.

December 15, 2021

New Hungarian test to detect all variants + latest COVID news

A Hungarian company developed a unique PCR test capable of detecting 99 pc of the known coronavirus variants, including the newest, omicron. Made by Femtonics Ltd, the test is easy to use. Meanwhile, the fourth wave of the pandemic is still raging in Hungary. Check out the latest news and data in the article.

Based on the company’s statement, the test can show the presence of the virus in just 4-10 minutes. Its efficacy is almost 100 pc – index.hu reported. Neuroscientist and practising doctor, Balázs Rózsa, said that one of the benefits of their genetics-based test is it can detect all virus and bacteria variants. The CEO and founder of the company added that the cost of their process is low. Therefore,

it might be capable of revolutionizing lab diagnostics.

Meanwhile, altogether

153 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the past 24 hours,

while 5,506 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Wednesday. So far 6,194,221 people have received a first jab, while 5,906,701 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 3,028,149 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

Read also: Hungarian parliament prolongs Covid-related special measures

The number of active infections stands at 165,202, while hospitals are treating 6,337 Covid-19 patients, 540 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 1,208,020 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 37,232. Fully

1,005,586 people have made a recovery.

There are 42,569 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,890,023.

Read alsoHungarian discovery: This can triple the chance of survival for COVID-19 patients

December 15, 2021

Hungarian discovery: This can triple the chance of survival for COVID-19 patients

Hungarian doctors have reached a new significant milestone in the fight against the coronavirus. Based on their results, the antidepressant fluoxetine can triple the chance of survival for COVID-19 patients.

It is a well-known fact that stress has a negative effect on our health. Furthermore, it can even worsen the situation in the case of a serious illness. Based on this factor, the Hungarian medical team came up with a creative solution. Their primary purpose was to decrease the Covid-fueled fear of death and anxiety in patients by using medication as effectively as possible. However, they discovered the most potent molecule against Covid during their experiments.

During the case-control study, it has been noticed that the mortality rate decreased by a third among those Covid infected patients who were prescribed an antidepressant called fluoxetine.

The initial aim of the use of the antidepressant fluoxetine was to improve the overall psychological and physical well-being of people infected with Covid. András Holló, neurologist, rehabilitation psychiatrist and project leader of the study team revealed that serotonin-based antidepressants, such as fluoxetine, have been poven to be effective against hepatitis C and some other viruses in laboratory settings for many years. Accordingly, their curative effect was already known before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. This led the study team to conclude that serotoninergic antidepressants may also be able to suppress the so-called cytokine storm, known as the fatal consequence of Covid infection.

The effects of antidepressants could only be accurately evaluated once the third wave had subsided, following highly complex analyses by mathematical statisticians. When analysing the medical records of patients treated between 17 March and 22 April 2021, the Hungarian medical team observed encouraging results in the case of patients treated with the antidepressants. Accordingly, the utilised fluoxetine antidepressant reduced mortality by a third in the Covid ward of the Budapest Uzsoki hospital.

The antidepressant fluoxetine tripled the chance of survival for COVID-19 patients.

According to András Hollós, this is an absolutely unprecedented result because the Covid drugs that have been tried so far did not even come close to this efficacy.

As the Hungarian news portal Index reports, the medical team is now working to present their findings in scientific format as soon as possible. The results have already been published in English in the Journal of Neurology, an internationally indexed and listed journal. The next step is to present their findings to decision-makers, including professional colleagues as well as ministerial and academic committees, at both national and international levels.

Read alsoNew Hungarian coronavirus test detects 99% of the variants in 6-10 minutes

December 14, 2021

Hungarian parliament prolongs Covid-related special measures

Lawmakers on Tuesday voted to prolong the special measures related to the coronavirus pandemic until June 1, 2022.

The motion was passed with 133 votes in favour, 2 against and no abstentions.

The government says its proposal to extend the measures would continue to allow it to be flexible in its response to the challenges posed by the pandemic.

If the status of the pandemic allows, the government will initiate lifting the special measures before their expiration, according to the justification of the bill.

István György, the state secretary for regional administration of the Prime Minister’s Office, said in the bill’s parliamentary debate that

the law would not affect the general election set to be held sometime next spring, adding that referendums could also be held while the measures are in effect.

read also: Hungary surpasses 37,000 COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic began

Lawmakers last extended the special measures in September until Dec. 31.

Parliament also voted to extend the moratorium on loan repayments until June 30, 2022.

Read alsoBreaking news – Omicron variant present in Hungary!

December 14, 2021

Katalin Karikó’s team is chosen as Hero of the Year by TIME

According to the magazine, the miracle workers behind the COVID-19 vaccines channeled their ambitions to the common good, talked to one another and trusted in facts.

This year the acknowledgments were given to professionals who played a significant role in developing the vaccines against Covid-19. These hardworking heroes are Kizzmekia Corbett, Barney Graham, Katalin Karikó and, last but not least, Drew Weissman.

Katalin Karikó grew up in a small town in Hungary. She studied biology at the University of Szeged where she first learned about RNA. Her interest in this branch of science continued as she pursued higher education getting a master’s degree and then a Ph.D., writes Time. She worked at the Biological Research Centre at Szeged, but after her unsuccessful attempt in corralling mRNA, she lost funding to her laboratory.

The now world-famous scientist was perseverent and dedicated to her mission. She decided not to give up on her goal and found a position at Temple University in Philadelphia. Despite her effort, there was an obstacle she had to overcome.

Hungarian citizens were not allowed to take more than $50 with them when they left the country. This measure was taken by the government to ensure that citizens would not become defectors. The Hungarian scientist, however, had a solution to this issue. She and her husband sold their car for $1,200, and hid the cash in their daughter’s teddy bear.

Time presents Karikó as a perseverant woman who is fully dedicated to science. When she moved to the University of Pennsylvania in 1989 there were very few people working on mRNA. She spent long hours at the laboratory and applied for grants every month. According to her, she got rejected at least 24 times, but she always wanted to know the reason for the rejection and the ways she could improve her work.

Once again, after 6 years, her efforts seemed unappreciated and she lost funding to the lab for the second time. She moved to the neurosurgery department to earn a living, but continued her research.

She met immunologist and physician Drew Weissman by the copy machine at the office. They struck up a conversation and she managed to convince Weissman about the importance of mRNA research. Afterwards, the two scientists worked together for more than a decade.

In 2005, their results were published in the journal Immunity, and they were looking towards the future with high expectations. Yet their hopes did not seem to blossom.

It took a pandemic for the world to understand the value of Kariko’s work – the magazine writes. In 2013, Kariko joined BioNTech to participate in the mRNA program. By this time, Ugur Sahin and Ozlem Tureci, co-founders of BioNTech, were already working on mRNS. Although, they initially had a different goal. The two co-founders tried to develop a vaccine against cancer. When Chinese researchers provided information about the coronavirus, Karikó and Weissman could finally put their knowledge into practice. Then the German company partnered with Pfizer and the rest is history.

In the meantime, Kizzmekia Corbett and Dr. Barney Graham were central figures in developing Moderna’s vaccine. The four scientists finally reaped the success of their hard work and received the acknowledgments they deserved.

And to combat the false and skeptical rumours about the vaccine, there is one more thing to add. Contrary to the misinformation, both Weissman and Karikó have taken the vaccine that they developed themselves. The duo got their first dose on 18 December last year.

Read alsoBreaking news – Omicron variant present in Hungary!

Read alsoCould the Omicron variant end the pandemic? – Katalin Karikó is hopeful

December 14, 2021

Hungary surpasses 37,000 COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic began

grief mourning obituary black hungarian flag hungary

Altogether 195 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the past 24 hours , while 3,575 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Tuesday.

So far 6,192,253 people have received a first jab, while 5,900,371 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 3,014,936 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 168,918, while

hospitals are treating 6,507 Covid-19 patients, 563 of whom need respiratory assistance.

read also: Omicron variant present in Hungary!

Since the first outbreak, 1,202,514 infections have been registered, while

the number of fatalities has risen to 37,079.

Fully 996,517 people have made a recovery.

There are 40,518 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,868,961.

Read more news about Coronavirus in Hungary

Read alsoCould the Omicron variant end the pandemic? – Katalin Karikó is hopeful

December 14, 2021

Breaking news – Omicron variant present in Hungary!

The Omicron coronavirus variant has been detected in Hungary, according to Cecília Müller, the chief medical officer.

The omicron variant has been detected in two people, Müller told public television current affairs channel M1 on Monday.

She noted that

the Delta variant is still by far the most dominant variant in Hungary.

Today omicron variant was detected in two laboratory samples, Müller said. She added,

one of the infected has mild symptoms, the other is in a moderate condition and is in hospital.

Chief medical officer added that the omicron variant is already spreading in Europe, so it was to be expected that this strain would also appear in Hungary.

She also said that further observations and research on the omicron variant are ongoing.

read also: Could the Omicron variant end the pandemic? – Katalin Karikó is hopeful

The programme also said that the national health officer believes that

the third vaccine is now more important than ever.

The Hungarian-owned diagnostic laboratory Neumann Labs informed MTI in a statement that the two confirmed cases of infection with the omicron variant so far have been identified at Neumann Labs, and that

the mutation infected a couple whose members had not visited abroad, so they must have contracted the disease at home.

In addition to the confirmed omicron infection of the couple,

the Hungarian lab is investigating other suspicious cases,

they added.

They said the Hungarian laboratory’s recently introduced new PCR test can detect all new coronavirus infections and separately detect whether the latest omicron mutation caused them.

read also: Hungarian Olympic champion in critical condition due to coronavirus

Read alsoPassengers almost hit a virus denier for not wearing a mask on a tram – VIDEO

December 13, 2021

Could the Omicron variant end the pandemic? – Katalin Karikó is hopeful

Leading scientist Katalin Karikó, who has greatly contributed to the development of the Covid-19 vaccine, gave an interview in the Sunday programme of the Hungarian Kossuth Rádió.

In the radio programme, she was interviewed about a few questions concerning the doubts around vaccination, and she debunked a few misconceptions, shedding more light on the nature of vaccines.

Karikó also talked about the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus, and she believes that there is hope that this might be the last Christmas where we have to deal with restrictions.

Why the need for a booster jab?

To the question of why people might need to get a booster jab, Karikó said the following to Híradó.hu:

When people are vaccinated, a healthy body will create antibodies based on the protein found in the vaccine. When this happens, these antibodies will enter the bloodstream and will also be found in the mucus membrane of the nose.

As the number of antibodies begins to diminish, likewise in the mucus membrane, people who have been vaccinated a while ago could be infected more easily than those recently vaccinated. Karikó added that the antibodies can also be present in breastmilk, giving a sort of protection to the children of breastfeeding mothers.

She highlighted that while people who have been vaccinated can get infected since their immune system has previously encountered one of the proteins of the RNA of the virus, it can react thanks to the memory cells, thus helping to mitigate the severe symptoms of the virus infection, potentially saving people, she told Híradó.hu.

However, underlying health conditions and obesity can have a major effect on the mortality rate of infected people.

Karikó refuted the claims that the vaccine causes the coronavirus infection. She explained that mRNA vaccines only contain a string of protein derived from the virus’s RNA.

New variant to end the pandemic?

About the Omicron variant, the Hungarian scientist said that in vitro testing is currently ongoing regarding the effectiveness of the vaccines against the new variant. The data is not yet sufficient, she added.

Katalin Karikó said that if the new Omicron variant takes over the Delta variant, there is a possibility that it could end the pandemic.

She highlighted that it is not yet proven, but she is hopeful that this might be the last Christmas people have to spend the holidays under epidemiological restrictions.

Read also Omicron variant detected near Hungary + latest COVID data

December 13, 2021

Hungary reports 16,017 new infections over weekend

Altogether 455 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the weekend, while 16,017 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Monday.

So far 6,190,822 people have received a first jab, while 5,893,531 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 3,005,109 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 170,416, while

hospitals are treating 6,531 Covid-19 patients, 565 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 1,198,939 infections have been registered, while

the number of fatalities has risen to 36,884.

Fully 991,639 people have made a recovery.

There are 43,047 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,853,922.

Read more news about Coronavirus in Hungary

Read alsoCOVID peaking + new flu variants to hit Hungary

December 13, 2021

Jobbik MEP Gyöngyösi: Follow the traffic lights – New German govt’s impact

Remarks of Jobbik MEP Gyöngyösi:

The race of Germany’s political parties showed quite a few twists and turns over the months before the election. Angela Merkel’s succession proved to be too much of a challenge for the Union parties, while the Greens’ growing popularity, albeit for a brief period, appeared to be enough for them to win the election. Despite their drawn-out crisis however, the Social Democrats managed to nominate a candidate, i.e., Olaf Scholz, who was able to attract two distinct voter groups: those who wanted Merkelian continuity as well as those who preferred the necessary changes.

As far as Germany’s last year was concerned, there was only one thing we could be fairly certain of: Germany reached the end of the Merkelian era. The country’s new direction was not quite clear even after all the results came in: SPD’s victory was far from a landslide, while CDU/CSU’s defeat was far from devastating. As soon as the idea of the two big parties’ broad coalition was ruled out, the road seemed to open for a so-called traffic-light coalition, consisting of SPD, the Greens and FDP, to govern Germany.

As to how such a diverse government is going to manage Europe’s economic powerhouse, that’s still the music of the future.

On the other hand, there is some reason for optimism, since Olaf Scholz was able to subvert all pessimistic expectations and bring together a multi-party coalition agreement in record time by offering an acceptable compromise for everyone.

Compromises will likely be needed in the future, too, along with the tight control and strict discipline that characterizes the new chancellor according to the people who know him: it will be hard to coordinate the Free Democrats’ market liberalism with the Socialists’ leftist ideas and the Greens’ often radical-leaning climate policy. We can already see the potential conflicts among the coalition partners: while Social Democrats have insisted on increasing the minimum wage and taxing the super-rich, FDP’s pro-market business owner supporters will probably find these policies hard to swallow, and they are not likely to welcome the Green ideas to regulate competition on the grounds of climate policy, either.

However, the challenge comes with a great potential reward, especially for the traditionally small Free Democratic Party: if FDP can help to keep the coalition together, it will be able to tip the balance between two much larger left-wing forces, thus promoting the classical liberal and civic values that serve as the pillars of the party’s identity.

Furthermore, FDP can also form the counterbalance against certain radical green ideas that may be socially and economically impractical or perhaps even infeasible.

What we already know for sure is that the new German government is facing enormous challenges: it will need to ensure European stability in the middle of a crisis-ridden period, and to revitalize a community that has lost its momentum in many aspects over the past years. Germany’s administration will need to address such major issues as the post-Covid economic recession, the China and Russia relations as well as the questions concerning the nature and the process of further European integration.

It is our common interest to see the three-party coalition clear the obstacles in its way.

Read alsoOrban: After Merkel, we now prepare for battle with our eyes wide open

December 12, 2021

Passengers almost hit a virus denier for not wearing a mask on a tram – VIDEO

A scandal was video recorded on tram 47 in Budapest. An old woman made comments about a child wearing a mask on public transport and criticized the mother. Passengers expressed their opinions as well, and the situation quickly turned into an aggressive argument.

Coronavirus has a negative impact on society. Some people lost their jobs, others suffered the tragic loss of their loved ones. But no matter how small or immense someone’s losses are, there is one thing that people share in common: many otherwise kind people are suffering from the stress and the negative impacts of the pandemic. This could have been one of the reasons why a comment instigated an argument on tram 47 in Budapest.

Blikk wrote that an elderly woman commented on a child wearing a mask. She expressed her opinion many times and said that the child could not breathe. The mother of the child replied that the child can breathe and they are wearing a mask on public transport to protect themselves and others.

The situation quickly escalated, and passengers took the side of the mother. The older woman said that the other passengers “believe in propaganda” and “experimental vaccines”. The scene ended in people shouting, and a man started yelling at the top of his lungs.

The video depicting the events was recorded by a journalist working for ATV. The video was broadcasted on TV and also shared on ATV’s Facebook page with the caption “Disturbing, sad video.” On the recording, we can see the older woman, who did not wear a mask, getting into a heated argument.

Someone told her to “shut up”, while another person told her to “put on her mask.” Another passenger who cannot be seen on the recording, but sounds like a child told her to “put on her mask or get off” the tram. A very angry man started yelling at that point, telling the elderly person that is because of people like her that people are coping with a pandemic. He added that the whole pandemic would be over if the old person and people with a similar mindset “would not be this stupid”. Then what sounds like a child’s voice loudly tells people to “call the police”.

A nurse, who works at the Covid department said something as well. The elderly person said “shame on you”. Then she allegedly got off the tram.

Read alsoThese are the positive and negative news about the new Omicron variant

Read alsoNew Hungarian coronavirus test detects 99% of the variants in 6-10 minutes

December 8, 2021

Hungarian Olympic champion in critical condition due to coronavirus

The 51-year-old former Hungarian Olympic champion receives hospital care in Budapest and is currently in an intensive care unit.

Szilveszter Csollány, Olympic, world and European champion gymnast is on a ventilator – says Magyar Nemzet. The 51-year-old former athlete is currently being treated in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Budapest due to the complications of the coronavirus infection.

The former athlete caught the coronavirus three weeks ago, and his condition began to deteriorate a week ago.

The newspaper called Csollány on the 23rd November to make their usual Saturday interview, but Csollány asked to postpone it due this his illness. Last Monday, he only responded to the newspaper by a text message, saying, that he was still not able to make the interview because he was being hospitalised. After that, he did not respond to the inquiries anymore.

Read also: Hungarian rock legend János Kóbor (79) dies in COVID – MUSIC VIDEOS

The Hungarian Gymnastics Association said that they cannot confirm or refute the fact that Csollány is in the hospital.

“I do not know details about Szilas’s status or well-being” – said Csollány’s former coach, István Vereckei according to Borsonline.

The trainer continued: “Even the fact surprised me, that his body, his immune system was not resistant to the virus. I talked to him regularly on the phone and he recently mentioned that he started running half marathons. This is good for fitness, but it was unusual to hear because gymnasts are not known for their passion for long distance running. We even organised a cooking competition together. He claimed that he was better in the kitchen than me. However, when he tasted my cooking, he admitted that I was more competent with the spoon. I wish he will visit us again as soon as possible, and we can make some Christmas delicacies together. I pray for his speedy recovery.”

Csollány worked as a coach in Austria and was often sharing Covid-skeptical and anti-vaccination content on his Facebook page.

Read also: Omicron variant detected near Hungary + latest COVID data

He won an Olympic silver medal in 1996 and a gold medal in 2000 as well as world championships and European championships.

Read alsoNew statistics show how many vaccinated people are treated in Hungarian hospitals

December 8, 2021

Omicron variant detected near Hungary + latest COVID data

The omicron variant of the virus was detected in Croatia, the country’s public health institution told yesterday. Based on the HZJZ’s decision, regardless of whether one is vaccinated or not, they have to go to a 14-day-long quarantine provided they got in touch with people having the South-African variant.

According to portfolio.hu, those concerned have to do a PCR test on both the first and last day of their quarantine. The Croatian public health authority announced on Monday the detection of the new variant in two citizens. They took part in an international conference a couple of days before. Later that day, they published a new statement clearing that

they found the third omicron-infected patient.

In Croatia, there are 2,436 patients treated in hospitals, 319 of them receive respiratory assistance.

Reuters reported that “British drugmaker GSK (GSK.L) said on Tuesday its antibody-based COVID-19 therapy with U.S. partner Vir Biotechnology (VIR.O) is effective against all mutations of the new Omicron coronavirus variant.”

New Hungarian coronavirus test detects 99% of the variants in 6-10 minutes

In Hungary, altogether 213 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours, while 6,849 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Wednesday. So far 6,166,840 people have received a first jab, while 5,874,429 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether

2,824,464 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 184,295, while hospitals are treating 7,206 Covid-19 patients, 607 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 1,168,728 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 36,048. Fully 948,385 people have made a recovery. There are 47,718 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,701,776.

Read alsoThese are the positive and negative news about the new Omicron variant

December 8, 2021