October 15, 2021

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Newsroom, 16.10.2021, 00:17

COVID-19 Romania has run out of places
in its ICU’s treating Covid -19 infections. 17,600 people are currently being
treated in hospitals around the country out of which 17 hundred are in
intensive care. The Defence Ministry has decided to increase the number of beds
in all military hospitals across the country. Romania’s interim Health
Minister, Cseke Attila, has announced that more ICUs will be added to
Bucharest, which presently has scores of severe cases. According to him, 8
infected patients have already been transferred to clinics in Hungary and the
transfer of infected patients is going to continue today. Also today the
National Committee for Emergency situations is expected to make a decision upon
the proposal of the National Public Health Institute (INSP) over instating
quarantine in Bucharest and its surroundings, which yesterday reported roughly
4 thousand new cases. The INSP recommends that all activities be interrupted in
these localities and circulation restricted for two weeks to limit the rapid
spread of the virus. The Prime Minister says that he is not considering such a
solution for the moment but an alternative solution that would be imposing the
green certificate in the institutions which have an increased contact with
people.

TALKS Romania’s Prime Minister
designate, Dacian Ciolos, is today having a new round of talks in an attempt to
rebuild the ruling coalition with the National Liberal Party (PNL) and the
Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania (UDMR). The first round of talks
ended with no concrete result and Ciolos announced his plan B: a USR ruling
programme as well as a list of ministers for the new cabinet, which he intends
to present to Parliament next week. The interim Prime Minister and PNL leader
Florin Citu says that the coalition cannot be rebuilt but around the PNL. He
continues to criticize the USR for its contribution to dismantling the
country’s government during the pandemic saying, quote, ‘the USR must admit its
mistake and we must move further’ unquote. The USR, number two in the former
ruling coalition, has made new appeals to responsibility concerning the PNL and
UDMR. Kelemen Hunor, the head of the UDMR, said after the first round of talks
that the goal at this moment is the solution to the present pressing issues,
namely the pandemic, the energy prices, inflation and the National Plan of
Recovery and Resilience, either in a government formula or another. The main
opposition party PSD says that Romania needs snap elections, and that a
technocratic government can handle the medical crisis and the country’s economy
until those elections.

GAMING Romanian capital Bucharest is these days playing
venue for the world’s major electronic games competition Dota 2’s. The event
will culminate with the grand finale on October 17th involving the
participation of the world’s best sides out of the 18 participating. According
to organizers, the tournament will be available online to 10 million
spectators. Romania is going to receive 16% out of the total prizes of 40
million dollars. The World Gaming Championship, which is being hosted by the
National Arena in Bucharest, is going without spectators this year due to the
Covid-19 pandemic.

ATTACK A man suspected of having
killed 5 people in Norway by shooting arrows at them is to be brought before
court today. Espen Andersen Brathenl is a Danish citizen who converted to Islam
and lives in the city of Kongsberg, where he committed the crimes. According to
sources he has admitted his crime, which the authorities have described as a
terror attack. Bratheln has also served convictions in the past.

(bill)