Key Storylines
- AFRICA: People in the DR Congo’s city of Bukavu have rallied in support of Nobel Laureate Denis Mukwege, who has received death threats in recent weeks after he called for justice on serious human rights violations.
- AMERICAS: The US government’s next jobs report is likely to show slower jobs growth as financial assistance from the government ran out.
- ASIA: Sri Lanka and India are escalating efforts to end an oil tanker fire burning incident for a second day off Sri Lanka’s coast, prompting officials to warn of potentially huge environment damage for Sri Lanka’s coast if the ship leaked or exploded.
- EUROPE: Russia says it wants dialogue with Germany over the case of opposition politician Alexei Navalny, adding that Russian doctors who treated him initially were much more transparent than the German doctors treating him now.
- MIDDLE EAST: Bahrain said it will allow all services traveling from Israel to the UAE, including commercial flights, to fly over its airspace.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Six Belarusian journalists who were detained earlier this week while reporting on an anti-government protest are set to go on trial as Belarusian authorities continue their crackdown on dissent following the country’s recent disputed election.
Top Story
- Hong Kong: UN rapporteurs raise concerns over new security law.
- In a letter to the Chinese government, UN experts have told China its new security law for the city “infringes on certain fundamental rights”, including the right to assemble peacefully and the freedom of expression.
- The group of experts consists of independent human rights monitors, along with the UN’s special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Fionnuala Ni Aolain.
- In the letter, which was made public today, the UN experts also said the law breached international legal obligations.
- The experts also expressed concern that it could be used to prosecute political activists and called for a fully independent review of China’s new security law for Hong Kong.
- In response, China issued a statement in which it told the UN experts to stop “meddling” in its affairs.
- Reporting: AP, AFP, BBC, Deutsche Welle, Reuters
Africa
- DR Congo: People in the city of Bukavu have rallied in support of Nobel Laureate Denis Mukwege, who has received death threats in recent weeks after he called for justice on serious human rights violations. (Reuters)
- Mali: The country’s former President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, ousted recently in a coup, has reportedly left the hospital after being treated for a mini-stroke. (AFP)
- South Sudan: The former employees of a contractor of the UN’s mission in the country have blocked the entry to the mission’s compound in protest of what they say is their mistreatment and unfair dismissal. (VOA)
Americas
- Region: Colombia’s police chief General Oscar Atehortua called upon a former US Green Beret behind a plot to overthrow Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro to “answer for his crimes” in the South American country. (AP)
- Region: Hurricane Nana made landfall in Belize before weakening and eventually dissipating as it crossed through Guatemala. (AP)
- Jamaica: The country’s ruling party led by Prime Minister Andrew Holness has claimed a landslide victory in the country’s parliamentary elections. (Miami Herald)
- United States: The government’s next jobs report is likely to show slower jobs growth as financial assistance from the government ran out. (Reuters)
Asia
- Region: Sri Lanka and India are escalating efforts to end an oil tanker fire burning incident for a second day off Sri Lanka’s coast, prompting officials to warn of potentially huge environment damage for Sri Lanka’s coast if the ship leaked or exploded. (AP)
- Malaysia: Prosecutors have withdrawn criminal charges against three Goldman Sachs units accused of misleading investors over $6.5 billion in bond sales they helped organize for the 1MDB state-fund, according to state-media reports. (Reuters)
- New Zealand: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has decided to keep in place current measures to restrict the spread of the new coronavirus until mid-September. (Reuters)
- Palau: The western Pacific nation has urged the US military to build bases on its territory after a visit to the country by US Defense Secretary Mark Esper last week. (Guardian)
Europe
- Region: Russia says it wants dialogue with Germany over the case of opposition politician Alexei Navalny, adding that Russian doctors who treated him initially were much more transparent than the German doctors treating him now. (Reuters)
- Region: Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Turkey should drop “threats” against his country if talks on reducing tension in the eastern Mediterranean are to begin. (AFP)
- Czech Republic: Prague’s Mayor Zdenek Hrib pledged to continue strengthening exchanges with Taipei, noting that the sister-city relationship between the two cities was non-political and mutually beneficial. (DPA)
Middle East
- Region: Rival factions in Palestine held a rare meeting with each other following the recent Israel-UAE deal to normalize relations, with senior figures of the Fatah faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad all present at the meeting. (Reuters)
- Region: Bahrain said it will allow all services traveling from Israel to the UAE, including commercial flights, to fly over its airspace. (Reuters)
- Lebanon: Emergency scoured rubble for a possible survivor in Beirut after the detection of a pulse drew crowds hopeful of a miracle one month on from a devastating explosion. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Media: Six Belarusian journalists who were detained earlier this week while reporting on an anti-government protest are set to go on trial as Belarusian authorities continue their crackdown on dissent following the country’s recent disputed election. (RFE-RL)
World
- Cyclones:
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
- Confirmed Cases as of 04SEP20: 26,331,492
- Total Recovered Cases as of 04SEP20: 17,541,744
- Deaths as of 04SEP20: 869,290
- Countries with Confirmed Cases: 188
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- Ebola Virus Disease: DR Congo (11th Ebola outbreak figures from Equateur Province)
- Confirmed Cases as of 30AUG20: 103
- Probable Cases as of 30AUG20: 6
- Deaths as of 30AUG20: 47
- Sourcing: WHO
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
Tomorrow’s Outlook (05SEP20)
- Global: G20 Education Ministers will hold a virtual meeting.
- Australia: Protests against the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic could take place in Melbourne.
- Italy: Anti-coronavirus protests could take place in Rome.
- Nigeria: International flights will be allowed to resume operations.
- Poland: Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski plans to launch a new “citizens movement” following his recent narrow defeat in the country’s elections.
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