Key Storylines
- AFRICA: The UN Security Council adopted a statement asking warring parties in Somalia “to reject violence and resume dialogue as a matter of urgency and without precondition.”
- AMERICAS: Top health regulators announced that the United States can immediately resume use of Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine, ending a 10-day pause to investigate its link to extremely rare but potentially deadly blood clots.
- ASIA: Sri Lankan police arrested a top Muslim leader and member of parliament in connection with the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks that killed 279 people.
- EUROPE: Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny has announced the end of his hunger strike, which he earlier declared at a penitentiary to demand that he be examined by doctors of his choice.
- MIDDLE EAST: Tensions in Jerusalem triggered the worst round of cross-border violence between Israel and the Gaza Strip in months, with Palestinian fighters firing at least 30 rockets and with the nation striking back at targets operated by Gaza’s Hamas rulers.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: A recycled SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule with four astronauts aboard is on its way to the International Space Station, where the spacecraft is set to dock.
Top Story
- Southeast Asia: The leaders of the Myanmar Junta head to an ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia for their first international visit.
- Indonesian and Malaysian leaders sought a summit of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which Myanmar is a member, after the junta failed to embrace calls to end violence and release political detainees including deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
- General Min Aung Hlaing, who led the military takeover that sparked turmoil in his country, arrived in Jakarta for a meeting of Southeast Asian leaders seeking to forge a path to end the violence in the impoverished nation.
- Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi of Indonesia showed hope of progress saying, “we can reach an agreement on the next steps that can help the people of Myanmar get out of this delicate situation.”
- The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called for the Asean summit to resolve the crisis and prevent “possible grave humanitarian implications beyond Myanmar’s borders,”
- Reporting: DPA, AFP, AP, BBC
Africa
- Ethiopia: The deadline for voter registration for the upcoming sixth general elections has been extended by two weeks until May 7. (Xinhua)
- Somalia: The UN Security Council adopted a statement asking warring parties in the nation “to reject violence and resume dialogue as a matter of urgency and without precondition.” (AFP)
- South Africa: The country was able to reduce malaria deaths by over 91 percent, from 459 to 38 between 2000 and 2020. (Xinhua)
Americas
- Brazil: President Jair Bolsonaro said that if he were to demand the military to take the streets and restore order, “the order will be followed,” raising fresh concerns about his politicization of the military. (Reuters)
- United States: Top health regulators announced that the nation can immediately resume the use of Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine, ending a 10-day pause to investigate its link to extremely rare but potentially deadly blood clots. (Telegraph)
- United States: President Joe Biden expects to complete a campaign pledge to formally recognize the atrocities committed against the Armenian people by the Ottoman Empire. (AP)
Asia
- China: A spokesperson for the Xinjiang region called accusations of genocide “counter to the facts” as the country comes under more pressure this week over its treatment of the Uyghur ethnic group in the remote border area. (AP)
- India: The nation recorded a tally of 346,786 COVID-19 cases over the last 24 hours, while daily deaths from COVID-19 also broke a record amount. (Reuters)
- Indonesia: The oxygen supply for the 53 crew members of a submarine missing near Bali is believed to have run out with no sign of the vessel, despite the search being bolstered by the arrival of a sonar-equipped Australian warship. (AP)
- Sri Lanka: Police arrested a top Muslim leader and member of parliament in connection with the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks that killed 279 people. (AFP)
Europe
- Region: The European Union has dismissed Russian authorities’ accusations of Latvia-based independent news outlet Meduza as a “foreign agent” and asked Moscow to end its “systematic infringement” of basic rights and freedoms for the political opposition and other Russians. (RFE)
- Bulgaria: Veterinary authorities will kill 40,000 laying hens in the southeastern village of Krivo Pole after a bird flu outbreak was confirmed at an industrial farm there, the fifth since the beginning of the year. (Reuters)
- Germany: A controversial new law in the nation that imposes COVID-19 restrictions on areas where infections are increasing rapidly went into effect. (DPA)
- Russia: Opposition activist Alexei Navalny has announced the end of his hunger strike, which he earlier declared at a penitentiary to demand that he be examined by doctors of his choice. (Interfax)
Middle East
- Region: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will visit Iraq and Qatar following reported talks brokered by Baghdad between Tehran and Riyadh. (AFP)
- Iran: The nation recorded 22,904 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the country’s total infections to 2,358,809. (Xinhua)
- Israel: Tensions in Jerusalem triggered the worst round of cross-border violence between Israel and the Gaza Strip in months, with Palestinian fighters firing at least 30 rockets and with the nation striking back at targets operated by Gaza’s Hamas rulers. (AP)
Tech & Communications
- Space: A recycled SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule with four astronauts aboard is on its way to the International Space Station, where the spacecraft is set to dock. (AFP)
World
- Cyclones:
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 24APR21)
- Confirmed cases: 145,672,293
- Total recovered cases: 83,807,467
- Deaths: 3,087,046
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- Ebola Virus Disease: Guinea (as of 11APR21)
- Confirmed cases: 16
- Deaths: 12
- Sourcing: WHO
- Ebola Virus Disease: DR Congo (as of 11APR21)
- Confirmed cases: 11
- Deaths: 6
- Sourcing: WHO
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 24APR21)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (25APR21)
- Global: U.N. Security Council mandate expires on WMD non-proliferation
- Global: World Malaria Day
- Asia: Anzac Day
- Albania: Parliamentary Elections
END
