President Biden announced on Wednesday an accelerated effort to vaccinate Americans by his proposed July 4 deadline.

A herd of 15 wild elephants that walked 500 kilometers (300 miles) from a nature reserve in China’s mountain southwest were approaching the major city of Kunming on Wednesday as authorities rushed to try to keep them out of populated areas.

The World Health Organization announced Tuesday it had authorized the coronavirus vaccine made by the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac for emergency use.

Three people pulled up in a white S.U.V. outside a banquet hall near Hialeah, Fla., early Sunday and fired indiscriminately into the crowd before fleeing the scene, the Miami-Dade County police said.

The European Medicines Agency cleared the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for children ages 12 to 15 on Friday. The opinion will be sent to the European Commission for final approval.

Senate Republicans on Friday blocked the creation of an independent commission to investigate the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob. The final vote, 54 to 35, fell short of the 60 senators needed.

President Biden spoke with reporters on Thursday, and confirmed he would release an intelligence report on the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

Members of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority and the mayor of San Jose, Calif., held a news conference Thursday to honor the victims of Wednesday's mass shooting at a rail yard.

Republican senators outlined a $928 billion infrastructure proposal to counter President Biden's plan. Their plan involves unused coronavirus aid, and focuses on rebuilding roads and bridges.

Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen said on Thursday that while economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic has shown significant progress thanks to the American Rescue Plan, more economic assistance is still needed.