The EMA has given the green light for EU states to roll out the Johnson & Johnson jab, despite listing blood clots as a possible rare side effect.

Its decision comes after several EU countries suspended the rollout of the American jab following six reports of patients developing blood clots in the US. However, with over seven million US citizens already inoculated with the J7H COVID-19 vaccine so far, it said the benefits of taking it far outweigh the rare risks.

Johnson and Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccines arrived in Malta last week. However, health authorities decided to wait until their use was cleared by the EMA.

The island has been banking on the one-shot jab in order to speed up its vaccine roll-out. The island is set to receive 250,000 doses of that vaccine.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Chris Fearne has announced that Malta has brought forward its target for reaching herd immunity to June given the speed with which the country has managed to vaccinate the population. 

2. The police officer who killed George Floyd has been found guilty on all charges.

Former police officer Derek Chauvin has been found guilty of the murder of African-American man George Floyd.

The former Minneapolis officer was convicted with the killing of Floyd on charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter on Tuesday.

Floyd, a 46-year-old man, died in May 2020 after being restrained by Chauvin. Footage taken by a passerby showed the officer’s knees pressed into Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes as he gasped for breath before he died. His shocking death sparked global demonstrations about racism and police brutality.

This verdict is a historic moment in US history. Just a third of police officers charged with murder are convicted in the country.

However, just as Minneapolis enjoys justice for a murdered man, the city is mourning another black man who was murdered a week prior. Daunte Wright, who was 20 years old, was shot dead by a police officer.

3. Space X has launched four astronauts into space on a recycled rocket.

US space agency NASA and Elon Musk’s commercial rocket company Space X have launched four astronauts to the International Space Station today. Historically, it is the first team to be launched into orbit by a rocket booster recycled form a previous spaceflight.

Today’s Florida launch is the third time that Elon Musk’s private space firm has flown astronauts and marks a new chapter in human space exploration.

After a 23-hour flight into space, the team are set to stay on the space station for a six-month science mission.

5. Clashes erupt in Israel after far-right protesters shout “death to Arabs”.

More than 100 Palestinians and 20 Israelis have been injured in violent clashes that night after far-right Israelis marched in occupied East Jerusalem chanting “death to Arabs”.

Violence erupted outside one of the entrances to the Old City, where far-right protestors completed a march, and harassed Palestinians, waving banners that read “Death to terrorists”.

There have been a series of violent incidents since the start of Ramadan on 13th April in Jerusalem, home to holy sites of Muslims, Christians and Jews.

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