Author: Sashreek Garg

A few cases of monkeypox have now been reported in the United States, Britain, Spain and Portugal.    The outbreaks are alarming because the viral disease spread through close contact and was first found in monkeys. It mainly occurs in the west and central Africa and only occasionally spreads elsewhere.   Monkeypox is a viral disease that causes fever and similar symptoms, including a distinctive bumpy rash. It is usually mild; however, there are two strains: the West Africa strain and the Congo strain.   The West African strain has a mortality rate of about 1% of cases, whereas the congo strain is severe…

U.S. Soccer has become the first federation to equalise FIFA World Cup prize money awarded to both genders for participating in their respective World Cups. U.S. soccer women’s and men’s national team players will receive equal pay and prize money, including the World Cups, after agreeing on landmark collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) with the U.S. Soccer Federation on Wednesday. For official competitions, including the World Cup, national team players will earn identical game appearance fees for women’s (USWNT) and men’s (USMNT). For other official competitions, players of both genders will also receive equal/ identical game bonuses. “This is a truly…

President Joe Biden laid flowers at a memorial for Buffalo’s mass shooting victims ahead of a meeting with families of the primarily Black victims killed by a white gunman. Biden was joined by Jill and various political leaders from New York as he addressed the United States’ latest burst of race-related violence. He stopped at the memorial set up under a tree to pay his respects to the victims of a mass shooting. “America, evil will not win, I promise you. Hate will not prevail. And white supremacy will not have the last word,” Biden said in remarks at a…

On Monday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that Swedish and Finnish delegations should not bother coming to Ankara to convince Turkey to approve their NATO bid. Last week Turkey surprised its NATO allies by saying it would not support the membership of Sweden and Finland positively, citing their history of hosting members of groups Ankara deems terrorists as the main reason. On Monday, Erdogan repeated that Turkey doesn’t approve their bids to join NATO. He also called Sweden a “hatchery” for terrorist organisations and added that their parliament was full of terrorists. “Neither of these countries have a clear, open…

This election tests whether the heavily armed, Iran-backed Lebanon’s Hezbollah and its allies can keep their assembly majority amid soaring poverty and anger at the parties in power.   Lebanon held its first parliamentary election on Sunday since its economic collapse. Many citizens called it their last chance and hoped to overthrow the ruling government, which has been continuously blamed for the financial failure. But, on the contrary, many analysts believe that the odds of any significant change appear slim.   Since Lebanon’s last voting in 2018, it has suffered an economic meltdown orchestrated by the growth in the ruling class and…

Dozens of Palestinians packed around Abu Akleh’s coffin, some chanting, “with our soul and blood, we will redeem you, Shireen,” walked towards St. Joseph’s Hospital.   Israeli police forces charged Palestinian mourners who carried the coffin of Shireen Abu Aklen, an Al Jazeera journalist, on Friday. Thousands led her casket through the old city of Jerusalem while outpouring anger and grief over her killing.  The Israeli forces burst through the courtyard gates and charged at the crowd to stop the mourners from proceeding by foot rather than taking the coffin by car. Some beat the pallbearers with batons and kicked them.…

On Thursday, Sri Lankans flocked buses in Colombo to return to their hometown during a brief relaxation amid a curfew imposed after the Prime Minister resigned from office. The small island nation off India’s southern tip, which acts as a trade route between Asia and Europe, is battling its worst economic crisis since independence. Consequently, millions of people struggle to make ends meet and have blamed President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the administration for their plight. Violence erupted on Monday as supporters of former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attacked anti-government protesters in Colombo. According to the sources, more than 300 people…

The wealthy club of G7 countries have committed to phasing out their dependency on Russia and its oil imports by issuing a scattering statement and accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of disgracing Russia by invading Ukraine. The G7 countries, namely Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Britain, Japan and the United States – did not specify any individual commitments to substitute Russian energy. yet, analysts attribute this an important development in the ongoing campaign to pressure Putin by boycotting Russian imports and crippling its economy. Moreover, the campaign has united the international community against Moscow’s actions. “We commit to phase out our…

The Taliban has once again taken a U-turn by ordering Afghani women to cover their faces in public spaces. This order was taken just after girls were barred from entering schools. Many anticipate that the worst is yet to come considering that the Taliban is increasing the restriction on women. The international community and many Afghans have condemned the steps taken by Taliban in the recent months. “They should wear a Chadori (head-to-toe burqa) as it is traditional and respectful,” said a decree released by Taliban chief Haibatullah Akhunzada at a function in Kabul on Saturday. A spokesperson read the…

Luiz Inacio Lula da Sila, a former leftist President, called for the unification of Brazilians on Saturday. Many believe that he aimed to defend Brazil’s democracy by calling out Jair Bolsonaro and his authoritarian far-right government. While addressing his supporters, Lula pointed at the incompetencies of his adversary. “The most serious moment the country is going through forces us to overcome our differences and build an alternative path to the incompetence and authoritarianism that govern us,” he said. He called for his supporters and the general public to join him in defeating the opposition totalitarian government. “We want to join…