Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Amnesty International urged the UN Security Council to reimpose an arms embargo on South Sudan due to the violence and war crimes against civilians quadrupling this year despite a ceasefire agreement.
- AMERICAS: US President-elect Joe Biden named former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen as his nominee for Treasury Secretary.
- ASIA: China’s embassy in Australia accused Canberra of having “misread” a tweet that showed an edited image of an Australian soldier holding a bloodied knife to the throat of an Afghan child.
- EUROPE: Pfizer and BioNTech applied for EU regulatory approval for their coronavirus vaccine, raising the prospects of a potential vaccination drive starting as early as this month itself.
- MIDDLE EAST: Iran’s parliament paved the path for the implementation of a proposed bill that will require the government to pursue uranium enrichment of 20% and disregard other restrictions placed on Tehran under the 2015 nuclear deal.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Hong Kong’s i-Cable television station announced mass layoffs, in a move that reignited media freedom concerns in the city.
Top Story
- Global: UN says record number of people need aid due to coronavirus pandemic.
- The UN said it expects a record 235 million people requiring emergency aid next year due to the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic.
- The UN also estimated that this emergency aid will cost up to $35 billion, and will be required to ward off potential multiple famines.
- The UN’s Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mark Lowcock, said the most vulnerable countries to famine included Yemen, Afghanistan, Nigeria, South Sudan, the DR Congo, and Burkina Faso
- Meanwhile, the OECD struck a more positive note as it forecast the global economy to bounce back to its pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2021 due to the progress on the development of coronavirus vaccines.
- However, the OECD also warned that this economic recovery would likely be uneven across countries and that risks to this forecasted economic recovery still remained.
- Reporting: Reuters, AP, AFP, DPA
Africa
- Algeria: President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is set to return to the country soon following a month of hospitalization in Germany due to the coronavirus. (AFP)
- South Africa: The government requested a delay of a court hearing related to its wages dispute with public-sector trade unions. (Reuters)
- South Sudan: Amnesty International urged the UN Security Council to reimpose an arms embargo on the country due to violence and war crimes against civilians quadrupling this year despite a ceasefire agreement. (VOA)
Americas
- Brazil: The country’s space agency Inpe said the deforestation rate in the country’s Amazon region reached a 12-year-high. (BBC)
- Colombia: The country is set to reopen its maritime borders but not its land and river borders in a bid to stem the spread of the coronavirus. (DPA)
- Guatemala: Thousands of indigenous Mayan people blocked a highway in the country’s western region, demanding the resignation of President Alejandro Giammattei. (AFP)
- Haiti: Several healthcare workers went on strike over a recent spike in kidnappings in the country. (AFP)
- United States: President-elect Joe Biden named former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen as his nominee for Treasury Secretary. (AP)
Asia
- Region: China’s embassy in Australia accused Canberra of having “misread” a tweet that showed an edited image of an Australian soldier holding a bloodied knife to the throat of an Afghan child. (Reuters)
- India: The government is set to meet with farmers after rallies against the government’s agricultural and economic reforms sparked violent clashes with police near the capital city New Delhi. (AFP)
- Indonesia: Hundreds of Papuans held pro-independence protests across the country’s cities, coinciding with a declaration of a “government in exile” by the United Liberation Movement for West Papua. (Reuters)
- Sri Lanka: Authorities released hundreds of prisoners and said they will release thousands more soon after a prison riot was sparked due to coronavirus and overcrowding concerns. (AFP)
Europe
- Region: Pfizer and BioNTech applied for EU regulatory approval for their coronavirus vaccine, raising the prospects of a potential vaccination drive starting as early as this month itself. (AFP)
- Region: The Foreign Ministers of NATO countries are reportedly set to discuss ideas and proposals to reform NATO, as well as the situation in Afghanistan. (DPA)
- Germany: Interior Minister Horst Seehofer banned the Wolf Brigade 44 neo-Nazi group. (DPA)
- Moldova: President-elect Maia Sandu called for Russia to withdraw its forces from the separatist area of Trans-Dniester that lies on the country’s border with Ukraine. (BBC)
- United Kingdom: Cabinet Minister Michael Gove said there was still a chance of a no-deal Brexit occurring due to snags between London and the EU over fishing, governance rules and dispute resolution. (Reuters)
Middle East
- Region: Saudi Arabia reportedly agreed to allow Israeli airliners cross its airspace while traveling to the United Arab Emirates. (Reuters)
- Iran: Parliament paved the path for the implementation of a proposed bill that will require the government to pursue uranium enrichment of 20% and disregard other restrictions placed on Tehran under the 2015 nuclear deal. (Reuters)
- Lebanon: The World Bank warned that the country faces an “arduous and prolonged depression” due to the refusal of politicians to implement reforms that would help the country’s economic recovery. (AP)
- Yemen: Relief agencies said that the shelling of government-held districts resulted in the deaths of at least seven children over the previous 48 hours. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Media: Hong Kong’s i-Cable television station announced mass layoffs, in a move that reignited media freedom concerns in the city. (Reuters)
World
- Cyclones: Nothing to report.
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes:
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
- Confirmed Cases as of 01DEC20: 63,315,184
- Total Recovered Cases as of 01DEC20: 40,624,563
- Deaths as of 01DEC20: 1,469,835
- Countries with Confirmed Cases: 191
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
Tomorrow’s Outlook (02DEC20)
- Global: The UN’s International Day for the Abolition of Slavery – 1950
- Global: The Foreign Ministers of NATO member-states will hold a meeting.
- Global: The OECD’s Parliamentary Group on Artificial Intelligence will hold a meeting.
- Americas: The OAS Permanent Council will hold a meeting.
- Europe: The European Commission is expected to announce new draft rules for the digital sector.
- Europe: The Climate Ministers of Denmark, Portugal, will speak at the Sustainable Future Summit. (to 03DEC)
- Europe: The Health Ministers of EU member-states will hold a meeting.
- Europe: The European Central Bank’s governing council will hold a non-monetary policy meeting.
- Europe: Eurostat will release unemployment figures for October.
- Australia: The government will release its GDP statistics for Q3 of this year.
- China: Premier Li Keqiang will hold a virtual meeting Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.
- China: Joshua Wong and two other pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong are expected to face sentencing.
- Greece: Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will speak at the Greek Economic Summit event. (to 03DEC)
- Israel: Bahraini Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Zayed R Alzayani will visit. (to 03DEC)
- Israel: The Blue and White party will reportedly back a bill calling for new elections.
- Laos: Republic Day/National Day – 1975
- Lebanon: The UN and France will host an international donors conference for the country.
- Montenegro: Parliament will hold a vote on forming a new government.
- Slovakia: Appeals proceedings in the case of murdered journalist Ján Kuciak will begin.
- United Arab Emirates: Independence Day/National Day – 1971
- United Kingdom: A new coronavirus lockdown is expected to end.
- United States: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will testify to the House Committee on Financial Services on the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
- United States: Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Mark Milley will speak at a Brookings Institution event.
- United States: Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov will speak about the relationship between Washington and Moscow at a Brookings Institution event.
- Venezuela: The Organization of American States will present a report on human rights abuses in the country.
END
