Key Storylines
- AFRICA: The Libyan Interior Ministry said it would investigate the fighting between two of its security forces that broke out in the capital Tripoli a day earlier.
- AMERICAS: Strike teams fighting wildfires in Oregon faced a resurgence of dry, windy weather, while an outbreak of COVID-19 among firefighters posed a new obstacle in battling the three-week-old blaze.
- ASIA: Thousands of people gathered on the streets of Sydney and other Australian cities to protest lockdown restrictions amid another surge in cases, and police made several arrests after crowds broke through barriers and threw plastic bottles and plants.
- EUROPE: U.S. and Russian diplomats announced that they will have the first round of nuclear arms control talks of the Biden administration in Geneva, Switzerland.
- MIDDLE EAST: A top hospital director warned that the deepening economic crisis in Lebanon has mounted pressure on hospitals, leaving them ill-equipped to face a new wave of COVID-19.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Private rocket company SpaceX was awarded a $178 million launch services contract for NASA’s first mission focusing on Jupiter’s icy moon Europa and whether it may host conditions suitable for life.
Top Story
- Worldwide: Many nations deal with an increase in COVID-19 cases as the Delta variant spreads.
- Among adults who have not yet gotten a vaccine, 35% say they probably will not, and 45% say they definitely will not, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
- The number of COVID-19 cases surpassed 40 million in Latin America and the Caribbean.
- Malaysia’s health ministry reported 15,902 new COVID-19 cases, the highest number of daily infections since the beginning of the pandemic.
- Russia recorded nearly 24,000 new COVID-19 cases and a repeat of an all-time high in the number of daily deaths, at 799, but some officials suggested that infections, especially in Moscow, may have peaked.
- Hanoi, Vietnam, entered a 15-day lockdown to combat a new Covid-19 wave linked to the highly contagious Delta variant, the worst the country has faced since the start of the pandemic.
- Brazil recorded 108,732 additional cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours, bringing the total caseload to 19,632,443.
- Reporting: AP, AFP, Reuters1, Reuters2, EFE, Xinhua
Africa
- Ethiopia: The parents of thousands of students stranded in the war-ravaged northern Tigray region asked for help to evacuate them after the primary university warned it could not feed them for much longer amid food and cash shortages. (Reuters)
- Libya: The Interior Ministry said it would investigate the fighting between two of its security forces that broke out in the capital Tripoli a day earlier. (Xinhua)
- Sierra Leone: Parliament voted to end the death penalty in the West African country. (Xinhua)
Americas
- Ecuador: The number of inmates killed in prison riots in two jails this week rose to 27, forcing the government to declare a state of emergency. (AFP)
- United States: President Biden launched an open attack on Donald Trump at a campaign rally for Terry McAuliffe, leading an intense effort to tie the Democrat’s opponent in the Virginia governor’s race to the former president. (AP)
- United States: Strike teams fighting wildfires in Oregon faced a resurgence of dry, windy weather while an outbreak of COVID-19 among firefighters posed a new obstacle in battling the three-week-old blaze. (Reuters)
Asia
- Australia: Thousands of people gathered on the streets of Sydney and other cities to protest lockdown restrictions amid another surge in COVID-19 cases, and police made several arrests after crowds broke through barriers and threw plastic bottles and plants. (AP)
- China: The government announced that everyone in a county in the southwest near Myanmar will be tested for COVID-19 following a spike in infections. (AP)
- India: Rescuers searched through mud and debris in a desperate search for survivors as the death toll from multiple monsoon-triggered landslides is now at 45. (AFP)
- India: The nation recorded 39,097 additional COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. (Reuters)
Europe
- Region: U.S. and Russian diplomats announced that they will have the first round of nuclear arms control talks of the Biden administration in Geneva, Switzerland. (RFE)
- Germany: A survey found that only 17 percent of people think Christian Democrats’ chancellor candidate Armin Laschet drew the correct conclusions from the flood disaster. (DPA)
- Russia: Emergency sirens sounded in the southern region of Sochi overnight after rivers overflowed with heavy rain for a second time this month and flooding closed a motorway. (Reuters)
- United Kingdom: Boris Johnson intends to copy aspects of Tony Blair’s political project in the hope of gaining voters in former Labour heartlands. (The Guardian)
Middle East
- Iraq: Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi will meet with US President Joe Biden on Monday to discuss a possible full US troop withdrawal from his country. (AFP)
- Lebanon: A top hospital director warned that the deepening economic crisis has mounted pressure on hospitals, leaving them ill-equipped to face a new wave of COVID-19. (AFP)
- Palestinian Territories: A teenager died after being shot during fighting with Israeli soldiers at a protest over settlements in the occupied West Bank. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Space: Private rocket company SpaceX was awarded a $178 million launch services contract for NASA’s first mission focusing on Jupiter’s icy moon Europa and whether it may host conditions suitable for life. (Reuters)
World
- Cyclones:
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 24JUL21)
- Confirmed cases:193,165,622
- Deaths: 4,143,105
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 24JUL21)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (25JUL21)
- Asia: French President Emmanuel Macron will visit the French Polynesian islands. (to 27JUL)
- Europe: Russia will resume air communications with the Czech Republic and France.
- Europe: US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Ambassador John Kerry will visit the United Kingdom and Italy. (to 26JUL)
- Germany: Armin Laschet is interviewed by public broadcaster ZDF; the head of the liberal FDP party, Christian Lindner, will have a similar interview on broadcaster ARD
- Pakistan: Azad Kashmir legislative assembly election
- Russia: Navy Day
END
