Key Storylines
- AFRICA: The U.N. reported fighting in the Tigray region of Ethiopia and a famine that is now affecting more than 400,000 people.
- AMERICAS: Cyber-security firm Huntress Labs said about 200 U.S businesses have been hit by a “colossal” ransomware attack.
- ASIA: Emergency response crews from Japan’s defense force were dispatched to the central city of Atami after landslides triggered by heavy rains left at least 20 people missing.
- EUROPE: Countries across Europe are working to accelerate COVID-19 vaccinations and outpace the spread of the more dangerous delta variant in a high-stakes race to prevent hospital wards from filling up again with patients fighting for their lives.
- MIDDLE EAST: President Hassan Rouhani expressed concern that Iran will be hit by a new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic due to an outbreak of the Delta variant.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: TikTok is working in Pakistan after a provincial court lifted a suspension of the popular social media service but ordered it to address complaints that it hosted obscene content.
Top Story
- North America: A record heatwave continues in the Pacific Northwest Region, leading to wildfires.
- More than 130 wildfires exasperated by lightning strikes and intense heat are burning across western Canada.
- Canadian government officials expect 250,000 acres will burn by the end of this weekend, a rare event as the region’s forest fire season usually starts in late July.
- The death toll in Oregon alone has reached at least 95, the state medical examiner said on Friday, most occurring in Multnomah County, which encompasses Portland.
- The small town of Lytton in British Columbia, where a record temperature of 49.6 degrees Celsius was recorded earlier this week, was almost entirely destroyed by a wildfire, causing more than 1,000 people to flee.
- Reporting: BBC, Reuters, AP, DPA,
Africa
- Ethiopia: The U.N. reported fighting in the Tigray region and a famine that is now affecting more than 400,000 people. (BBC)
- Ghana: The nation confirmed a community infection of the Delta variant. (Xinhua)
- Uganda: The government announced that if they could immunize nearly half the population, COVID-19 would be contained in the nation. (Xinhua)
Americas
- El Salvador: The attorney general’s office in the nation seized some assets of the conservative opposition party in what it said was an attempt to recover funds embezzled from a donation from Taiwan between 2003 and 2004. (Reuters)
- United States: Residents of a Miami-area high-rise were forced to evacuate the building when it was found to be unsafe in a review due to the deadly collapse of a building just a few miles away. (AP)
- United States: Cyber-security firm Huntress Labs said about 200 businesses have been hit by a “colossal” ransomware attack. (BBC)
Asia
- Australia: New South Wales recorded its most considerable daily increase in COVID-19 cases this year, even as residents in several major cities across the country were released from lockdowns. (Reuters)
- Japan: Emergency response crews from the national defense force were dispatched to the central city of Atami after landslides triggered by heavy rains left at least 20 people missing. (Reuters)
- Myanmar: Protesters in the coup-hit nation marked the birthday of junta leader Min Aung Hlaing by burning his portrait and conducting fake funerals. (AFP)
- Thailand: Health authorities in the country reported more than 6,200 new Covid-19 cases, setting a record for the third straight day, as concerns mounted over shortages of treatment facilities and vaccine supplies. (The Guardian)
Europe
- Region: Countries across Europe are working to accelerate COVID-19 vaccinations and outpace the spread of the more dangerous delta variant. (AP)
- France: Far-right leader Marine Le Pen is facing increased criticism for making her party too mainstream and ignoring grassroots members which could cost her votes in next year’s presidential election. (AP)
- Poland: The political party of former European Union Council president and former prime minister Donald Tusk has asked him to return to domestic politics. (DPA)
- Turkey: The foreign ministry has slammed a U.S. report on human trafficking that criticized Ankara for aiding “operational, equipment, and financial support” to an armed militia in Syria that uses child soldiers. (AP)
Middle East
- Iran: Authorities announced the Bushehr nuclear power plant has resumed operations after being shut down two weeks ago for an overhaul. (Reuters)
- Iran: President Hassan Rouhani expressed concern that the nation will be hit by a new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic due to an outbreak of the Delta variant. (AFP)
- Syria: Six children were among eight civilians killed by regime artillery fire on the last major opposition stronghold of Idlib in the country’s northwest. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Social Media: TikTok is working in Pakistan after a provincial court lifted a suspension of the popular social media service but ordered it to address complaints that it hosted obscene content. (AFP)
World
- Cyclones: Nothing to report.
- Hurricanes:
- Tropical Storm Elsa
- Location: 16.2 N 69 W
- Movement: WNW at 27 mph
- Wind: 75mph
- Map
- Tropical Storm Elsa
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 03JUL21)
- Confirmed cases: 183,124,067
- Deaths: 3,964,861
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 03JUL21)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (04JUL21)
- Egypt: Court resumes hearings in compensation dispute between the Suez Canal Authority and owners of the Ever-Given tanker, which became stuck in the waterway,
- Japan: Local elections in Tokyo.
- Rwanda: Liberation Day.
- United States: Independence Day.
- United States: President Joe Biden hosts 1,000 health and military employees at the White House.
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