Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
WHO declares global health emergency over monkeypox outbreak
The rapidly spreading monkeypox outbreak represents a global health emergency, the World Health Organization’s highest level of alert, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Saturday. The WHO label – a “public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC)” – is designed to trigger a coordinated international response and could unlock funding to collaborate on sharing vaccines and treatments.
Floods kill at least 22 in southern Iran
At least 22 people were killed in flash floods caused by heavy rains in Iran’s southern province of Fars, a provincial official said on Saturday. There was at least one person missing, said Khalil Abdollahi, head of the province’s crisis management department, quoted by the semi-official news agency Tasnim.
France tells Iran it’s disappointed at lack of progress over nuclear talks – Elysee Palace
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his disappointment to his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi at the lack of progress over talks on the 2015 nuclear agreement, the Elysee Palace said in a statement on Saturday. In June, Iran began removing essentially all the agency’s monitoring equipment, installed under its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Two Americans recently died in Ukraine’s Donbas region
Two U.S. citizens recently died in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, a U.S. State Department spokesperson said on Saturday, without disclosing further details. The U.S. administration was in touch with the families of the deceased and providing “all possible consular assistance,” the State Department spokesperson.
Tell us where Russian troops are living, Ukraine tells citizens in key region
Ukraine’s defence ministry on Saturday urged citizens in a key area seized by Russia to reveal where Moscow’s troops were living and who among the local population was collaborating with the occupying authorities. The statement by the ministry’s defence intelligence directorate was aimed at people in and around the southern city of Enerhodar, which is home to a major nuclear power station.
Russian missiles hit Ukraine port; Kyiv says it is still preparing grain exports
Russian missiles hit Ukraine’s southern port of Odesa on Saturday, the Ukrainian military said, threatening a deal signed just a day earlier to unblock grain exports from Black Sea ports and ease global food shortages caused by the war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the strike blatant “barbarism” showing Moscow could not be trusted to implement the deal. However, public broadcaster Suspilne quoted the Ukrainian military as saying the missiles had not caused significant damage and a government minister said preparations continued to restart grain exports from Black Sea ports.
EU looks to replace gas from Russia with Nigerian supplies
The European Union is seeking additional gas supplies from Nigeria as the bloc prepares for potential Russian supply cuts, Matthew Baldwin, deputy director general of the European Commission’s energy department, said on Saturday. Baldwin was speaking in Nigeria where he held meetings with officials from Africa’s largest oil producer this week.
Thousands join Budapest Pride march in sweltering heat
In sweltering temperatures, thousands of Hungarians took part in the annual Budapest Pride march on Saturday, vowing to keep up their fight against government policies on LGBTQ rights that have drawn EU condemnation. The European Commission sued Hungary earlier this month over a law passed last year to limit teaching about homosexuality and transgender issues in schools, the latest anti-LGBTQ measure to be passed by the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
‘I am the underdog,’ says British PM candidate Sunak
Former British finance minister Rishi Sunak on Saturday described himself as the underdog in the contest to become Britain’s next prime minister. Sunak’s resignation helped trigger a revolt that saw Prime Minister Boris Johnson agree to step down after a series of scandals. Members of the ruling Conservative Party will vote for a successor over the summer, with an announcement due on Sept. 5.
Iran says it detains Israel-linked network planning sabotage
Iran said on Saturday its security forces had arrested a network of agents working for Israel before they were able to carry out sabotage and “terrorist operations”, state media reported. The announcement by Iran’s Intelligence Ministry came amid heightening tensions with arch-enemy Israel over Tehran’s nuclear programme.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)