Nachrichtenagentur Radio Utopie
Nachrichten direkt von der Quelle. Im Kontext sehen. News Agency of Radio Utopie. News directly from the source. There is context in life. Deutsch, English. 24 h. – Democracy First!
(19.02.2021)
Findings of the pre-published study, not yet peer-reviewed, but based on a national database that is one of the world’s most advanced, were first reported by the Israeli news site Ynet late on Thursday and were obtained by Reuters on Friday.
Pfizer declined to comment and the Israeli Health Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Ihren Stufenplan präzisierte sie dabei: Öffnungsschritte müssten gekoppelt mit vermehrten Tests klug eingeführt werden, sagte Merkel am Montag nach Angaben von Teilnehmern in Online-Beratungen des CDU-Präsidiums. Die Sehnsucht der Bürger nach einer Öffnungsstrategie sei groß, das verstehe sie.
In Bayern sollen laut Ministerpräsident Söder nächste Woche neben Friseuren auch Fußpflegepraxen öffnen dürfen. Zudem sollen Gärtnereien, Gartenmärkte und Blumenläden wieder ihre Waren verkaufen dürfen, wie Söder in München ankündigte.
“Unfortunately, viruses mutate. Sometimes this is by accident. But often the reason is that the virus wants to become more adept to infect the host.”
This, Madhi explained, was what had happened with the South African variant as well as another variant that was first identified in the United Kingdom.
(today)
Boris Johnson has ordered ministers to ramp up preparations for reopening schools after being told the UK is now past the peak of the current wave of coronavirus.
The Prime Minister has made it clear that the Government’s immediate focus must be on education and is expected to announce further measures to help children catch up after almost a year of disruption.
Alle Experten seien sich aber einig, dass sich die Variante durchsetzen wird, wenn sie nicht von noch besser angepassten Nachfolgern überholt wird. Die Studien, die B.1.1.7 eine höhere Infektiösität bescheinigen, seien „sehr sauber gemacht“, man hoffe aber auf zusätzliche Evidenz aus dem Labor.
Hintergrund ist, dass Pfizer seine Anlagen ausbauen will, um die Impfstoffproduktion zu erhöhen – von derzeit 1,3 Milliarden auf zwei Milliarden Dosen jährlich. Dies werde vorübergehende Auswirkungen auf die Lieferungen Ende Januar bis Anfang Februar haben, so der US-Konzern. Im Werk im belgischen Puurs könne es bei Aufträgen und Lieferungen zu Schwankungen kommen.
Outside, protesters could be heard chanting „USA, USA!“ and „This is our house“ as they quickly began forcefully removing metal barriers.
The Nuffield Trust thinktank stated: “The perilously uncertain future facing the UK at the end of the Brexit transition period could put the UK’s health and care system at risk.”
The report said new migration rules, possible disruption to medicines and devices, an ongoing economic slowdown and barriers to science investment would hit the health sector.
Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, told a press conference that London was being moved to more stringent Tier 3 restrictions because cases were surging in and around the capital — and not directly in response to the discovery of the new variant.
However, there have been three that have caught scientists‘ attention:
D614G
D614G is by far the most common strain of coronavirus affecting humans worldwide and first appeared in February in Germany.
It is thought to account for 85 per cent of global cases.
The D614G mutation sprung up at one specific location, position 614, on the spike protein of the virus, in a European patient.
This viral spike hijacks the human receptor ACE2 and this is how it infects human cells.
Laut dem von Pfizer veröffentlichten Studienprotokoll wurden in der zulassungsrelevanten Untersuchung aber keine Teilnehmer aufgenommen, die eine Vorgeschichte schwerer Nebenwirkungen im Zusammenhang mit einem Impfstoff und/oder schwerer allergischer Reaktionen auf einen Inhaltsstoff der Studie haben.
Das MHRA hatte als weltweit erste Regulierungsbehörde dem Impfstoff vor einer Woche eine Notfallgenehmigung erteilt. Sie will die Fälle nun untersuchen.
They developed symptoms of “anaphylactoid reaction” shortly after receiving the vaccine, but both recovered after the appropriate treatment.
After the incident, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) told NHS trusts that anyone who has a history of “significant” allergic reactions – including to medicines, food or vaccines – should not currently receive the vaccine.
(02.12.2020)
„Everyone will be issued a written card that they can put in their wallet that will tell them what they had and when their next dose is due,“ Moore said. „Let’s do the simple, easy thing first. Everyone’s going to get that.“
On Wednesday the Department of Defense released the first images of a COVID-19 vaccination record card as well as vaccination kits, according to CNN.
„Everyone will be issued a written card that they can put in their wallet that will tell them what they had and when their next dose is due,“ says Dr. Kelly Moore, associate director of the Immunization Action Coalition.
Ruth Humbel, a National Councillor with the Swiss People’s Party, said that people who are immune to the virus should receive a card or certificate which will allow them to participate in certain activities, such as going to football games, clubs or travelling, 20 Minutes reports.
– Pfizer vaccines licensed by UK regulator and will be distributed from next week
– Wales says people will be issued with ID-style cards to show they have had jab
– Fears that pubs and shops could demand proof of vaccine before allowing entry
Determining whether a vaccine can protect against severe disease and death from COVID-19 may not be possible in phase 3 clinical trials and will often require long-term, ongoing studies after widespread deployment of a vaccine.
To ensure ongoing evaluation of vaccine safety, well-supported pharmacovigilance studies after licensure will be necessary.
Pfizer chairman Albert Bourla told Dateline host Lester Holt that the pharmaceutical company was “not certain” if the vaccine prevented the coronavirus from being transmitted, saying, “This is something that needs to be examined.”
„Die Impfungen alleine werden den Job nicht machen“, sagte WHO-Experte Mike Ryan heute in Genf. Sie seien zweifelsfrei ein mächtiges und wirkungsvolles Werkzeug. Aber viele bisherige Hygieneregeln wie soziale Distanz, das Tragen von Masken und häufiges Händewaschen müssten zunächst weiterhin beachtet werden.
Just als der Attentäter am 21. Juli in der Slowakei Munition für sein Sturmgewehr kaufen wollte, stellte der Verfassungsschutz die Observationen ein.
In Brüssel wird so ein Anlass seit 25 Jahren mit schnöder Regelmäßigkeit dafür missbraucht, längst geplante Überwachungsvorhaben durchzusetzen.
Ms Bingham was appointed chair of the UK’s Vaccine Taskforce for Covid-19 in May and reports directly to the Prime Minister on the progress of a coronavirus vaccine, which experts say is key to controlling the pandemic.
The taskforce, which Ms Bingham says was the ‚brainchild of Sir Patrick Vallance‘ — Number 10’s chief scientific adviser, is at the forefront of putting plans in place to get the UK population vaccinated.
(17.10.2020)
Nach wochenlangem Streit und wenige Tage vor einem dazu erwarteten Gerichtsurteil einigten sich Landesregierung und Tourismusbranche am Sonnabend auf einen Kompromiss. Für Urlauber im Nordosten reicht von kommendem Mittwoch an ein negativer Corona-Test aus, der nicht älter als 48 Stunden ist. Die bislang zusätzlich geforderte Quarantäne von mindestens fünf Tagen und ein folgender zweiter Test entfallen
Despite the concerns, Senate Republican leaders say they want to move ahead with confirmation hearings for Barrett, which are slated to begin Oct. 12. Both Lee and Tillis are members of the 22-member Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold the hearings and ultimately decide whether his confirmation will move forward for a vote in the full Senate.
Two Republican senators on the pivotal Judiciary Committee have tested positive for the coronavirus after attending White House events last week announcing Mr. Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, throwing the future of her Supreme Court confirmation hearings into question.
But by Friday evening, with the White House and Congress in turmoil and two Republican members of the Judiciary Committee, Senators Mike Lee of Utah and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, among those announcing they had tested positive for the virus, it was clear that the challenge had grown steeper.
Top Republicans insisted they would move ahead at an uncommonly swift pace to hold hearings on Judge Barrett’s nomination by Oct. 12, send her nomination to the full Senate by Oct. 22 and confirm her as soon as Oct. 26, eight days before Election Day — even if it meant breaking Senate norms and considering a lifetime judicial nomination by videoconference.
Netanyahu says lockdown won’t be lifted in a month ■ Knesset passes law limiting protests
The military struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after troops were fired upon from across the border, the military said early Wednesday, after announcing a „security incident“ at the border late Tuesday evening.
No soldiers were hurt, the army said.
(19.08.2020)
But Netanyahu said Israel would oppose such a deal, as the Israeli military must maintain superiority in the region.
The peace agreement “did not include Israel’s consent to any arms deal whatsoever between the United States and the UAE,” according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office.
“The U.S. made clear to Israel that it will always ensure to protect Israel’s qualitative edge.”
Israel’s Defense Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz, has entered quarantine after being exposed to a coronavirus carrier, Hebrew outlets reported Wednesday.
Gantz’s home will be equipped with the means necessary for him to fulfill his role, a defense ministry spokesperson said in a statement.
Masks became a political cause for some in the early months of the pandemic. A growing set of Republican leaders are suddenly pushing Americans to wear them.
(27.06.2020)
(25.06.2020)
New Jersey health officials released figures for probable Covid-19 deaths for the first time, raising the state’s total fatality count from the illness caused by the new coronavirus to nearly 14,900, a 14% increase over previous estimates.
State officials counted 1,854 probable fatalities after investigating death-certificate data dating back to late winter.
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said Monday that the Seattle Police Department will be returning to its abandoned East Precinct building “peacefully and in the near future,” following a weekend in which three people were shot at the edges of the protest area that has emerged around the building.
Durkan said the city would attempt to phase down nighttime activity in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest area, known as CHOP — or earlier, as CHAZ — but would not be using police to clear the zone
Die Beziehungen beider Länder werden auch durch die Corona-Pandemie belastet. Die australische Regierung löste Zorn in Peking aus, indem sie China vorwarf, die Ursprünge der Pandemie zu verschleiern, und eine unabhängige internationale Untersuchung forderte. Die chinesische Regierung riet daraufhin von Reisen nach Australien ab.
In August 2018, the Australian Government banned Huawei and other companies from involvement in Australia’s 5G network.
The ABC spoke to two former Australian officials who confirmed that the Huawei ban sparked the malicious cyber campaign. Both spoke on condition of anonymity given the sensitive nature of the story.
Amazon on Wednesday announced that it is placing a one-year moratorium on police use of its facial recognition technology, Rekognition.
„We’ve advocated that governments should put in place stronger regulations to govern the ethical use of facial recognition technology, and in recent days, Congress appears ready to take on this challenge,“ the company wrote in a blog post.
In this way, Floyd’s killing has created a wide, multicultural activist movement unprecedented in scope when compared with other notorious cases of police abuse. The 1991 videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King by Los Angeles Police Department officers provoked an international outcry, but it did not spark anything close to this movement.
Governors in nearly a dozen states plus the District of Columbia have now activated the National Guard amid protests and riots that have broken out in response to George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody earlier this week.
States calling for Guard asistance were California, Georgia, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Washington state.
The White House went into a brief lockdown on Friday evening as protests over the death of George Floyd raged nearby, according to reporters who said they were in the building at the time.
Dr. Robert Redfield, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Dr. Stephen Hahn, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, will testify by video conference at a Senate hearing about the coronavirus next week.
A spokesperson for DHS reportedly declined to comment on the number of cases.
He will be staying at home and teleworking while wearing a mask continually for 14 days.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn is in self-quarantine for a couple of weeks after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, an FDA spokesman told Reuters late on Friday.
Dr. Robert Redfield, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will self-quarantine for two weeks after he was exposed to a person at the White House who tested positive for Covid-19, a CDC spokesperson confirmed to CNN.
President Donald Trump hoped this would be the week he emerged into a nation recovering from pandemic. Instead the pandemic came to him.
„Sie wurde kürzlich getestet, und der Test war negativ, und dann wurde sie heute aus irgendeinem Grund positiv getestet“, sagte Trump gestern im Weißen Haus bei einem Treffen mit republikanischen Senatoren und Abgeordneten. Pence sei seither erneut negativ getestet worden und treffe alle nötigen Vorsichtsmaßnahmen, sagte er weiter.
Miller’s positive test prompted the vice president to delay his takeoff for a trip to Iowa. Six staffers who may have had contact with her deplaned, and all six later tested negative for the virus.
The positive tests reflect the dangers of the virus spreading inside the White House complex, and it further called into question what measures are being taken to try and limit the exposure of the top two elected officials in American government.
Miller is one of Pence’s closest aides and is married to Stephen Miller, one of Trump’s senior advisers.
(07.05.2020)
President Trump said he and Vice President Mike Pence, as well as the White House staff, would now be tested on a daily basis.
(02.05.2020)
– The U.S. saw 2,909 people die of Covid-19 in 24 hours, according to the data, which was collected as of 4 a.m. ET on Friday.
– That’s the highest daily death toll in the U.S. yet based on a CNBC analysis of the WHO’s daily Covid-19 situation reports.
– The country’s deadliest day comes as state officials weigh reopening parts of the economy and easing stay-at-home orders.
The new measures reportedly have the backing of the United States, according to The Times of Israel.
Israel’s envoy, Danny Danon, made the demands during a video press briefing, adding that the UN Security Council must be immediately informed if Lebanon moves to block any of the new measures.
Iranian hackers said to have routed the attack through servers located in the United States
Iran is the suspected culprit behind last month’s cyberattack on several facilities operated by Israel’s Water Authority, Fox News reported Thursday, citing a source among US officials.
Health experts say people are significantly less likely to get the coronavirus while outside, a fact that could add momentum to calls to reopen beaches and parks closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reaction and analysis from Fox News medical contributor Dr. Marc Siegel.
(25.04.2020)
Beschlossen wurde er bereits im Jahr 2017, umgesetzt ist er bis heute nicht – der elektronische Impfpass. „Wenn nicht jetzt angesichts der Coronasituation, wann dann sollte es allen Akteuren bewusst sein, dass wir den elektronischen Impfpass nicht länger vor uns herschieben können“, appellierte heute im Rahmen der Videokonferenz der Bundeszielsteuerungskommission die Kärntner Gesundheitsreferentin LHStv.in Beate Prettner.
There is no suggestion that any of the strains are any more potent or infectious than another, infectious disease experts say.
Professor Paul Hunter, at the University of East Anglia, told MailOnline it is ‚entirely plausible‘ this could happen to one of the strains if it continues to evolve.
The report, made public today, was given to the Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) in March to help them map the outbreak’s spread.
(29.04.2020)
Shopping malls and markets across Israel, shut due to the coronavirus outbreak, will only be allowed to reopen after the development of a tracking system that would monitor all visitors, Health Ministry Director General Moshe Bar Siman Tov said at a Monday meeting.
All customers will be required to install a tracking app on their phone to enter shopping malls and markets, once these reopen.
In a two-page memorandum to the country’s 93 U.S. attorneys, Barr cautioned that some state and local directives could be infringing on protected religious, speech and economic rights.
“If a state or local ordinance crosses the line from an appropriate exercise of authority to stop the spread of COVID-19 into an overbearing infringement of constitutional and statutory protections, the Department of Justice may have an obligation to address that overreach in federal court,” Barr wrote.
(today)
(today)
Officials said they sent samples from the February deaths to the CDC for testing and that results came back Tuesday.
A U.S.-Russian space crew landed safely Friday in the steppes of Kazakhstan, greeted with extra safety precautions brought on by a pandemic that didn’t exist when they left the Earth
If there is indeed no deal by the end of Gantz’s mandate period, there will follow a 21-day window during which any Member of Knesset (MK) could form a government.
“While these control measures appear to have reduced the number of infections to very low levels, without herd immunity against Covid-19, cases could easily resurge as businesses, factory operations, and schools gradually resume and increase social mixing, particularly given the increasing risk of imported cases from overseas as Covid-19 continues to spread globally,” says Prof Joseph T Wu from the University of Hong Kong, who co-led the research.
The Israel Defense Forces’ 98th Paratroopers Division primary mission is delivering roughly 1,000 tons (over 2 million pounds) of food to needy residents of the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak before the upcoming Passover holiday on Wednesday evening, a senior military official said Monday.
Schumer, D-N.Y., called for the investigations on MSNBC Saturday after Burr, R-N.C., Feinstein, D-Calif., as well as Sens. James Inhofe, R-Okla., and Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., were hit with allegations of selling large amounts of stocks before the coronavirus crisis rocked Wall Street.
“The answer, in one word, is yes. There should be and there will be,” Schumer said on MSNBC. “I don’t own any stocks. I think it’s a very bad idea for senators to own stocks.”
Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the C.D.C., confirmed in an interview with WABE in Atlanta, a National Public Radio member station, on Monday that the agency was reviewing its guidelines on who should wear masks. Citing new data that shows high rates of transmission from people who are infected but show no symptoms, he said the guidance on mask wearing was “being critically re-reviewed, to see if there’s potential additional value for individuals that are infected or individuals that may be asymptomatically infected.”
(27.03.2020)
Science has tried to interview George Gao, director-general of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for 2 months. Last week he responded.
As many as 25 percent of people infected with the new coronavirus may not show symptoms, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns — a startlingly high number that complicates efforts to predict the pandemic’s course and strategies to mitigate its spread.
In particular, the high level of symptom-free cases is leading the C.D.C. to consider broadening its guidelines on who should wear masks.
Darüber, wie viele positiv getestete Fälle ohne Symptome es bisher insgesamt gab, machte die Kommission keine Angabe. Wie viele Menschen täglich getestet werden und wie hoch die Dunkelziffer ist, ist ebenfalls unklar. Für Zweifel sorgt auch, dass China die Zählweise schon in den vergangenen Monaten mehrfach geändert hatte.
Mehrfach war Kritik an den Zahlen der chinesischen Führung laut geworden.
Die führende COVID-19-Reaktionsgruppe Chinas betonte am Montag die Eindämmung von Fällen von Infektionen, die keine Symptome zeigen.
Trump, by way of a signing statement, noted that his administration would quite simply override a provision in the nearly 900-page stimulus bill that would require the country’s newest inspector general–just created and tasked with overseeing the disbursement of the stimulus funds–to report to Congress any time the administration stonewalled about where or how those funds were being spent.
President Donald Trump has issued a signing statement declaring that he can block a watchdog from telling Congress when information is withheld about payouts to businesses in the massive new $2 trillion economic relief law.
Democrats fought hard for provisions in the measure to ensure …
(heute)
That scenario, code-named “Crimson Contagion” and imagining an influenza pandemic, was simulated by the Trump administration’s Department of Health and Human Services in a series of exercises that ran from last January to August.
The simulation’s sobering results — contained in a draft report dated October 2019 that has not previously been reported — drove home just how underfunded, underprepared and uncoordinated the federal government would be for a life-or-death battle with a virus for which no treatment existed.
Die Cyber-Intelligence-Firma NSO Group behauptet, eine Software entwickelt zu haben, mit der Gesundheitsministerien die Ausbreitung des Corona-Virus verfolgen können. Angeblich nutzen rund ein Dutzend Staaten sie bereits zu Testzwecken.
+++ Stau an Grenze zu Polen wächst auf 60 Kilometer +++ Bayern verschiebt Start der Abitur-Prüfungen +++.
The former vice president picked up the support ahead of crucial primaries on Super Tuesday.
Joe Biden just had the best day of his campaign.
The former vice president racked up three key endorsements in the span of 24 hours, earning the backing of former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke on the same night.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar will end her presidential bid on Monday and endorse Joe Biden, a campaign aide tells CNN.
The Klobuchar campaign confirmed that the senator is flying to Dallas to join the former vice president at his rally, where she will suspend her campaign and give her endorsement on the eve of Super Tuesday.
US-Behörden haben der „Washington Post“ zufolge Bernie Sanders informiert, dass Russland sich in den Vorwahlkampf einmische und ihn unterstützen wolle.
The disclosure of Russian assistance to Sanders follows a briefing to lawmakers last week in which a senior intelligence official said that Russia wants to see Trump reelected, …
Nach den rassistischen Morden von Hanau hält Politikwissenschaftler Korte ein Scheitern der AfD in Hamburg für möglich. Die Partei habe die Spaltung der Gesellschaft mitbetrieben.
Als Ausweg aus der politischen Krise vereinbarten die Parteien eine Wahl Bodo Ramelows zum Ministerpräsidenten einer Minderheitsregierung, die Zusammenarbeit bei bestimmten Projekten sowie Neuwahlen im kommenden Jahr.
Dazu passen die Angaben, die der mutmaßliche Attentäter von Hanau in einem Bekennerschreiben gemacht hat, das er vor der Tat im Internet veröffentlichte. In dem 24-seitigen Dokument, das dem SPIEGEL vorliegt, schreibt Tobias R. über seinen Lebensweg, vermeintliche Erkenntnisse und seine ideologischen Überzeugungen.
The survey shows Buttigieg at 25 percent and Sanders at 24 percent support among likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire, according to Suffolk’s latest daily tracking poll results from Thursday and Friday evenings. Buttigieg has surged 10 percentage points over three nights.
The once-improbable path for Pete Buttigieg to in the Democratic presidential nomination hinged on a strong performance in the Iowa caucuses.
(05.02.2020)
CNN’s John King explains why 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Mayor Pete Buttigieg leads more experienced politicians in the Iowa caucuses.
(04.02.2020)
„So we don’t know all the results, but we know by the time, it’s all said and done, Iowa you have shocked the nation. Because by all indications, we are going on to New Hampshire victorious,“ Buttigieg told the crowd in comments that drew criticism online.
With Sen. Bernie Sanders surging in the polls, DNC chair Tom Perez has put forward a cartoonishly neoliberal cast of foreign policy hacks and corporate lobbyists to sabotage his nomination.
The current system is a form of white privilege that warps the process.
Full story here, including Sanders‘ aggressive on-the-record pushback:
2020 Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden in Iowa on Friday said President Donald Trump had put the US on the „brink of a new kind of conflict,“ after Trump authorized the attack on the top Iranian commander in Iraq.
Incessant Fox griping over the “deep state” has been replaced by sober pleas that the U.S. intelligence community’s findings should be taken seriously.
For months, the Vermont senator was written off by Democratic Party insiders as a candidate with a committed but narrow base who was too far left to win the primary. Elizabeth Warren had skyrocketed in the polls and seemed to be leaving him behind in the race to be progressive voters’ standard-bearer in 2020.
But in the past few weeks, something has changed.
„He has a very good shot of winning Iowa, a very good shot of winning New Hampshire, and other than Joe Biden, the best shot of winning Nevada,“ said one former Obama adviser.
Despite having a heart attack in October that threatened to derail his second quest for the Democratic nomination, he remains at or near the top of polls in Iowa and other early states, lifted by his near ubiquitous name recognition and an enviable bank account.
His anti-establishment message hasn’t changed for 50 years, and it resonates with working-class voters and young people who agree the system is corrupt and it will take a revolution to fix it.
Trailing the Sanders-Warren-Buttigieg-Biden quartet was Representative Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii with 6 percent.
Senior members of Likud voiced outrage Sunday after a request was made for the party’s ministers and MKs to participate in a demonstration against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s indictment to be held Tuesday.
The request originating from the office of the party chairman, asked members including those in senior positions, to join the event protesting the state prosecution’s decision to indict Netanyahu on charges of corruption.
Lady Emma Arbuthnot, the Westminster chief magistrate enmeshed in a conflict of interest, will no longer be presiding over the extradition proceedings of imprisoned WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange, said WikiLeaks lawyer Jen Robinson, at an event in Sydney on Friday night .