More good vaccine news

Another vaccine candidate seeks emergency use authorization; Iran vows revenge after the killing of a top nuclear scientist.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Cameron Peters.

TOP NEWS

Promising vaccine candidates seek emergency use authorization

Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images

On Monday, the biotechnology company Moderna submitted an emergency use authorization to the Food and Drug Administration for its Covid-19 vaccine, which recent data suggest is as much as 94 percent effective. [NPR / Richard Harris]
According to data released by Moderna via press release from a 30,000-person clinical trial, the vaccine was also 100 percent effective in preventing "severe" Covid-19 infections. [Science / Jon Cohen]
Moderna's Monday announcement follows a similar move by Pfizer and BioNTech on November 20. Their EUA request is set to be considered by the FDA on December 10, and could be approved shortly thereafter. [CNN / Jamie Gumbrecht]
If the vaccines are approved, distribution could begin as soon as mid-December for high-risk groups like front-line health care workers. Widespread availability, though, will take longer. [Vox / Julia Belluz and Umair Irfan]
Positive tidings on the vaccine front come even as the US grapples with its worst coronavirus surge yet. On Friday, the US reported more than 200,000 new Covid-19 cases in a day for the first time, and the country is averaging about 162,000 new infections per day. [New York Times]
Public health experts, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, have warned that things could be even worse after the Thanksgiving holiday. "As we go for the next couple of weeks into December," Fauci told NBC Sunday, "we might see a surge superimposed on the surge we are already in." [NBC / Ben Kamisar]
Hospitals in some parts of the country are also at or approaching capacity, with more than 93,000 Americans currently hospitalized because of the virus. [NYT / Reed Abelson]
Even if the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines — as well as a third promising candidate by AstraZeneca and Oxford — prove as effective as hoped, Vox's Umair Irfan writes, "a vaccine is not enough on its own to end the pandemic." Mask-wearing and social distancing will remain paramount in combating the virus. [Vox / Umair Irfan]

Iran's top nuclear scientist is assassinated near Tehran

Iran is pledging retaliation after its top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was killed near Tehran on Friday in an attack some US officials have said was carried out by Israel. [NYT / David E. Sanger, Eric Schmitt, Farnaz Fassihi, and Ronen Bergman]
Fakhrizadeh's car is said to have been ambushed by gunmen, though there are conflicting accounts about the exact sequence of events. Fakhrizadeh was injured in the attack and died after being taken to a hospital. [Washington Post / Kareem Fahim, Joby Warrick, and Miriam Berger]
Fakhrizadeh is the second major Iranian figure to be assassinated this year; in January, the US killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani with an airstrike, a move that pushed regional tensions to new heights. [CNN / Sara Mazloumsaki and Eliott C. McLaughlin]
Fakhrizadeh's death comes shortly after a new report by the IAEA, an international watchdog charged with monitoring Iran's compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. The report concluded that Iran has stepped further away from the deal's restrictions by enriching uranium using advanced centrifuges. [Reuters / Francois Murphy]
In 2018, President Donald Trump withdrew the US from the Obama-era nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Iran. President-elect Joe Biden has indicated he hopes to reenter the deal, but Friday's killing could make that more difficult. [Vox / Cameron Peters]

MISCELLANEOUS

The Supreme Court heard arguments Monday in Trump's attempt to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census count used to apportion House seats.

[NYT / Michael Wines]

Arizona has certified its election results, confirming President-elect Joe Biden's win in the state. Sen.-elect Mark Kelly is set to be sworn in on Wednesday. [CNN / Bob Ortega]
A mysterious three-sided monolith that popped up suddenly in the Utah desert has vanished. [NPR / Jason Slotkin]
Cat lovers, rejoice: Biden is set to bring a feline companion to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the first time in more than a decade that a cat will live in the White House. [Slate / Daniel Politi]

VERBATIM

"We are, quite simply, out of time. Without immediate change, our hospitals will be too full to treat all of those with the virus and those with other illnesses or injuries. Soon you or someone you love may need us, but we won't be able to provide the life-saving care you need."

[University of Wisconsin health care workers on the importance of following public health guidance / UW Health]