Health

British authorities have quashed plans to prosecute protesters who attended a vigil for a murdered woman during the country's pandemic lockdown. The Crown Prosecution Service said Sunday that cases against six people over the March 2021 vigil in memory of Sarah Everard had been dropped because “our legal test for a prosecution was not met.”  Everard was abducted, raped and killed as she walked home from a friend’s house in London. Her killer, Wayne Couzens, was a serving Metropolitan Police officer. The killing and the police response ignited criticism of the police force and its attitude toward women’s safety. Allegations of misogyny and bungled investigations have undermined confidence in the police.

Poland’s environment minister says laboratory tests following a mass fish die-off have detected high salinity levels but no mercury in the Oder River. That means the mystery is continuing as to what killed tons of fish in Central Europe. The minister said analyses of river samples taken in both Poland and Germany revealed the elevated salt levels. She says comprehensive toxicology studies are still underway in Poland. The Oder River runs from Czechia and along the border between Poland and Germany before flowing into the Baltic Sea. Poland's prime minister vowed Saturday to do everything possible to limit the environmental devastation. A reward has been offered for information about those responsible.

Thousands of U.K. train drivers have walked off the job in a 24-hour strike over jobs, pay and conditions, scuppering services across much of the country. The walkout is the latest in a spreading series of strikes by British workers seeking substantial raises to offset soaring prices for food and fuel. Weekend workers, soccer fans heading for games and families heading for the seaside are among those having to change their plans on Saturday. Railway staff held a series of one-day strikes in June and July and plan more walkouts next week. Postal workers, lawyers, British Telecom staff, dock workers and garbage collectors have all announced walkouts for later this month.

Ukraine’s health minister has accused Russian authorities of committing a crime against humanity by blocking access to affordable medicines in areas its forces have occupied since invading the country 5 1/2 months ago. In an interview with The Associated Press, Ukrainian Health Minister Viktor Liashko said Russian authorities repeatedly have blocked efforts to provide state-subsidized drugs to people in occupied cities, towns and villages. The World Health Organization says it recorded 445 attacks on Ukrainian hospitals and other health care facilities as of Aug. 11 that directly resulted in 86 deaths and 105 injuries. But Liashko said the much higher number of casualties caused by damaged roads and bridges delaying ambulances “cannot be calculated.”

The biggest investment ever in the U.S. to fight climate change. A hard-fought cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for people in the Medicare program. A new corporate minimum tax to ensure big businesses pay their share. And billions leftover to pay down federal deficits. All told, the Democrats’ “Inflation Reduction Act” may not do much to immediately tame inflationary price hikes. But the package approved by Congress and headed to the White House for President Joe Biden’s signature will touch countless American lives with longtime party proposals. Here's a look at what's in the estimated $740 billion economic package.