New Events
Covid-19 Dashboard
… now: over 9.4 (+1.1) million cases, 483k deaths
… 6/19: over 8.3 (+0.8) million cases, 450k deaths
… 6/12: over 7.5 (+0.9m) million cases, 421k deaths
… 6/5: over 6.6 (+0.8m) million cases, 391k deaths Trackers: Johns Hopkins, NYT, CovidTracking.com
N. Africa/Egypt-Sudan (266m)
Egypt will gradually resume international flights July 1
… to allow foreign tourists at select resorts
Libya: UN-backed government re-takes control of Tripoli
… Haftar’s military failures disappoint his backers; re-assessing position
… The red line of Sirte: coastal town that is a gateway to oil facilities
Escalating economic protests in Tunisia.
… in Tatouine, over unemployment …
E. Africa/Horn (520m)
Somalia: suicide bombing targets major Turkish military base.
W. Africa/Nigeria-Sahel (457m)
Burkina Faso: ‘When the soldiers meant to protect you instead come to kill‘
… extremists, vigilantes, soldiers are all killing civilians in the north …
About a third of Nigeria’s workforce may be unemployed at end of year.
Fighting in the Sahel has driven 1.7 million from their homes.
W. Asia / Saudi-Iran (303m)
Dubai will re-open to tourists from July 7.
Iraq’s Basra, its richest city, has little water to drink
… Shatt al-Arab, confluence of Euphrates/Tigris, has become polluted
… in 2018, 118,000 suffered poisoning due to pollution in water
Lebanon: Over 90k Syrian refugees struggling to find food.
Saudi Arabia will drastically limit the hajj.
… The ‘hajj is canceled, and grief rocks the Muslim world‘
… would ‘welcome very limited numbers of pilgrims’
… limited to those nationalities already present in country
… international pilgrims from outside not permitted
… first time restrictions placed on the hajj since 1932
… last year, of 2.49m pilgrims, 1.86m came from outside
South-central Asia (2.1b)
India reports record daily surge in Covid-19 cases.
Delhi converting luxury hotels to Covid-19 care centers.
… hotel workers asked to take on role of hospital support staff …
8 hospitals in 24 hours: a pregnant woman’s crisis in the pandemic
… ‘nowhere would take her… an increasingly common story…’
… ‘people in desperate need of treatment keep getting turned away…’
Chenni locked down again as cases surge.
Pakistan: virus cases soaring, but must keep economy open
… ‘one of the fastest rates in the world… overwhelmed hospitals…’
… ‘trying to salvage a near-collapsed economy’
… ‘millions have already slid into poverty from pandemic restrictions’
… ‘many ignoring … calls to wear masks, obey social distancing rules…’
Pakistan’s ‘Covid-19 time bomb set to explode‘
Meanwhile, fighting has intensified in Baluchistan.
… #36 on the Top 40 Least
Afghan war intensified in the past 3 months.
‘Divorce isn’t an option’: Afghan women find hope in saffron scheme
… reveals the impact of drug addiction among men in villages
Central Asia eases lockdowns, cases shoot up.
East Asia (1.6b)
USA: Delta to resume flights between Seattle and Shanghai on 6/25.
China will tighten grip on HK with Chinese security force.
Long read historical survey of events behind India-China border clash.
… anger surges in India over the border clash …
… China blames India for the clash …
… Chinese structures being built in the Galwan Valley.
Southern China: Worst floods in decades submerge Chongqing
… 5 meters above flood line … 100k evacuated … homes destroyed …
USA, China in spat over international students…
… US plans to cancel visas for students with ties to military universities …
Taco Bell to open in Beijing in September.
Various sources report a continued, concerted effort in China to crack down on foreigners
… more interviews & interrogations. More need for ‘clean computers.’
… China sometimes prevents foreigners from leaving using exit bans …
… Continued reports of foreigners feeling less safe in China …
… USA continues with ‘do not travel’ warning because of Covid-19 …
… Those who’ve not been able to return because of Covid-19 less likely to go back …
China’s population is aging rapidly.
… by 2022, 1 in 7 will be over age 65 … economic implications …
South Korea strengthening entry restrictions for Bangladesh, Pakistan.
N Korea: ‘suspends planned military action against the South‘
… ‘blowing hot and cold is part of the strategy‘
Southeast Asia (700m)
Thailand to ease restrictions on foreigners entering …
… first foreigners allowed in will be largely skilled workers …
Thailand has gone 28 days with no local transmission …
… took rapid action, has largely stopped the virus …
… airport screenings, emergency ops center, 95% wearing masks, contact tracing, more …
Democracy disappearing: statues of democracy leaders being taken down
… On 88th anniversary of Thailand becoming constitutional monarchy …
Europe/North America (1,125m)
USA: How the pandemic has affected passports, global entry, TSA, more.
… Interstate disruption: NY, NJ, CT will quarantine travelers from surge states
European Union may bar American visitors as it reopens
… the final list isn’t out yet.
Spain lifts state of emergency after 3 month lockdown
New Learnings
The pandemic has shifted the conflict patterns in Africa.
… wars have intensified, governments have cracked down harder on protests …
How the world is learning to live with Covid-19
… testing, quick response times, tightened borders, reminders of social distance
… S Korea: ‘Everyday life quarantine’
… will make travel from infected/surging countries to tighter borders more difficult
Slowing Covid-19 is speeding other diseases
… mass immunization programs halted to slow spread of Covid-19 …
… polio, diphtheria, cholera, measles all flaring …
The death of cosmopolitanism
… ‘borders re-opening slowly, arbitrarily…’
… ‘fueled by public health concerns, reveals undercurrent of xenophobia’
… ‘feels less like the future, more like a return to the past’
Airplane passengers hiding Covid infection show risk of opened borders
The emerging long-term complications of Covid-19, explained.
… WHO: severe cases can expect 3 to 6 weeks of recovery
… in some cases full recovery could take years
The epidemic of contaminated medical waste following Covid-19
… 240 tons of medical waste per day, 6x normal levels …
… insufficient incinerators could lead to health issues …
Futuristics/Technology
Safari moving toward password-less logins.
Google will auto-delete new users’ web data after 18 months.
… you can set it to delete after 3 months …
Facebook is rolling out a function to notify you if you’re sharing old news.
… checks if a link you’re about to post is over 90 days old …