KEY COVID NOS. WORLDWIDE

Pos   /   Country   /   New Daily cases   /   Total Deaths   /        Daily Deaths /           Active Cases   /           Deaths/1M Pop

               World    5,30,761              /             40,73,574            /             8,216     /             1,22,83,432        /             522.6

1             USA        29,299   /             6,23,774              /             332        /             48,94,579            /             1,873

2             Brazil     57,664   /             5,37,394              /             1,470     /             8,13,702              /             2,510

3             UK          42,302   /             1,28,530              /             49           /             7,30,363              /             1,883

4             Russia    23,827   /             1,45,278              /             786        /             4,54,241              /             995

5             Indonesia            54,517   /             69,210   /             991        /             4,43,473              /             250

6             India      41,854   /             4,12,019              /             580        /             4,38,301              /             296

7             Mexico  11,137   /             2,35,277              /             219        /             3,13,117              /             1,805

8             Spain     26,390   /             81,043   /             10           /             3,05,641              /             1,733

9             Iran        23,371   /             86,391   /             184        /             2,84,066              /             1,015

10           Argentina            19,697   /             1,00,250              /             610        /             2,76,004              /             2,197

11           South Africa       17,489   /             65,595   /             453        /             2,00,694              /             1,092

12           Honduras             698        /             7,324     /             36           /             1,73,620              /             728

13           Poland   86           /             75,179   /             6             /             1,53,263              /             1,989

14           Bangladesh         12,383   /             17,052   /             210        /             1,45,074              /             102

15           Colombia             17,230   /             1,14,337              /             498        /             1,33,599              /             2,223

16           Iraq        9,635     /             17,677   /             47           /             1,13,442              /             430

17           Malaysia              11,618   /             6,503     /             118        /             1,01,359              /             198

18           Thailand               9,317     /             2,934     /             87           /             99,511   /             42

19           Tunisia  8,213     /             16,845   /             194        /             88,609   /             1,410

20           Turkey   6,907     /             50,367   /             43           /             84,709   /             591

31           Philippines           3,806     /             26,232   /             140        /             44,408   /             236

36           Pakistan               1,980     /             22,642   /             24           /             40,862   /             100

GLOBAL COVID-19 DEATHS ON THE RISE AGAIN

Covid-19 deaths and cases are on the rise again globally in a dispiriting setback that is triggering another round of restrictions and dampening hopes for a return to normal life.

The World Health Organization reported Wednesday that deaths climbed last week after nine straight weeks of decline. It recorded more than 55,000 lives lost, a 3% increase from the week before.

Cases rose 10% last week to nearly 3 million, with the highest numbers recorded in Brazil, India, Indonesia and Britain, WHO said.

Amid the surge, the death toll in hard-hit Argentina surpassed 100,000. Daily coronavirus deaths in Russia hit record highs this week. In Belgium, Covid-19 infections, driven by the delta variant among the young, have almost doubled over the past week. Britain recorded a one-day total of more than 40,000 new cases for the first time in six months.

In Myanmar, crematoriums are working morning to night. In Indonesia, which recorded almost 1,000 deaths and over 54,000 new cases Wednesday, up from around 8,000 cases per day a month ago, people near Jakarta are pitching in to help gravediggers keep up.

In the US, with one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, newly confirmed infections per day have doubled over the past two weeks to an average of about 24,000, though deaths are still on a downward trajectory at around 260 a day.

In Tokyo, experts have said caseloads could rise above 1,000 before the Olympics and multiply to thousands during the games.

The spike has led to additional restrictions in places like Sydney, Australia, where the 5 million residents will remain in lockdown through at least the end of July, two weeks longer than planned. South Korea has placed the Seoul area under its toughest distancing rules yet because of record case levels.

Parts of Spain, including Barcelona, moved to impose an overnight curfew. London Mayor Sadiq Khan said masks will be required on buses and trains even after other restrictions in England are lifted next week. Italy warned all those going abroad that they might have to quarantine before returning home.

TALIBAN SEIZE BORDER CROSSING WITH PAKISTAN

The Taliban captured the strategic border crossing of Spin Boldak on the frontier with Pakistan on Wednesday, continuing sweeping gains made since foreign forces stepped up their withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry denied the insurgents had taken the area even as social media was flooded with pictures of Taliban fighters relaxing in the frontier town.

Residents also told AFP it was in the Taliban's hands.

Spin Boldak is the latest in a string of border crossings and dry ports seized by the Taliban in recent weeks, with the insurgents looking to choke off much-needed revenue from the government in Kabul while also filling their own coffers.

In a statement, insurgent spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid assured traders and residents there that their “security is guaranteed”.

But Afghan officials insisted they were still in control.

“The terrorist Taliban had some movements near the border area... The security forces have repelled the attack,” Interior Ministry spokesman Tareq Arian said.

U.S. TO BEGIN EVACUATION OF AFGHANS WHO AIDED MILITARY EFFORTS IN THE COUNTRY

The Biden administration is set to begin evacuations of Afghans who aided the U.S. military effort in the nearly 20-year war during the last week of July, according to a senior administration official.

The official, who was not authorised to comment publicly, said on Wednesday that Operation Allies Refuge flights out of Afghanistan will be available first for special immigrant visa applicants already in the process of applying for U.S. residency.

U.S. President Joe Biden has faced pressure from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to come up with plan to help evacuate Afghan military helpers ahead of next month's U.S. military withdrawal.

INDIAN TALENT MOVING TO CANADA DUE TO OUTDATED H-1B VISA POLICY, U.S. LAWMAKERS TOLD

The much sought-after Indian talent is now getting attracted towards Canada in large numbers, away from the United States because of its outdated H-1B visa policy, immigration and policy experts have told U.S. lawmakers.

This is mainly because of the per-country quota on issuing employment-based green card or permanent residency, the experts said on Tuesday, urging the Congress to act fast to prevent the Indian talent from moving to Canada from the United States.

Without Congressional action, the total backlog for all three employment-based categories for Indians would increase from an estimated 9,15,497 individuals currently to an estimated 21,95,795 individuals by fiscal 2030, executive director of National Foundation for American Policy Stuart Anderson said.

“We should let that number sink in: Within a decade, more than 2 million people will be waiting in line for years or even decades for employment-based green cards,” he submitted in his testimony before the House Judiciary Committee-Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.

Testifying before the panel on “Oh, Canada! How Outdated U.S. Immigration Policies Push Top Talent to Other Countries,” Mr. Anderson said that highly skilled foreign nationals, including international students, are choosing Canada over America.

“This has happened in response to how difficult it is to work in the United States in H-1B status or gain permanent residence, and the comparative ease of international students and foreign nationals working in temporary status and then acquiring permanent residence in Canada,” he said.

UAE BECOMES 1ST GULF NATION TO OPEN EMBASSY IN ISRAEL

The United Arab Emirates on Wednesday became the first Gulf nation to open an embassy in Israel, nearly a year after both countries signed an agreement to normalise diplomatic ties.

The new mission is located in Tel Aviv Stock Exchange building. The ceremony was attended by new Israeli President Isaac Herzog, The Times of Israel reported.

UAE Ambassador Mohammad Mahmoud Al Khajah officially presented his credentials at the beginning of March but the official opening was not held until now.

"It is a great honour to open the embassy here. Ten months ago our two countries signed the Abraham Accords with a vision of dignity, prosperity and peace for the two peoples," Khajah said at the ceremony Wednesday.

He added: "This is just the beginning. Both countries are innovative nations and we will harness these new approaches for the prosperity of the countries."

Herzog, who took office last week, hailed the embassy opening as an "important step for the entire Middle East."

US SENATE PASSES BILL TO BAN ALL PRODUCTS FROM CHINA'S XINJIANG

The US Senate passed legislation on Wednesday to ban the import of products from China's Xinjiang region, the latest effort in Washington to punish Beijing for what US officials say is an ongoing genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim groups.

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would create a "rebuttable presumption" assuming goods manufactured in Xinjiang are made with forced labor and therefore banned under the 1930 Tariff Act, unless otherwise certified by US authorities.

Passed by unanimous consent, the bipartisan measure would shift the burden of proof to importers. The current rule bans goods if there is reasonable evidence of forced labor.

The bill must also pass the House of Representatives before it can be sent to the White House for President Joe Biden to sign into law. It was not immediately clear when that might take place.

AS MOSCOW BAKES IN RECORD HEAT, PUTIN CHANGES TUNE ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Russian president Vladimir Putin, notorious for his scepticism about global warming, has now said that climate change is a priority and vowed to work along with the United States to battle increasing global temperatures, news agency AFP reported on Thursday. The development comes amid a record-breaking heatwave in Russia during June which experts say could lead to the hottest summer that the country has experienced in more than a century.

Moscow is baking in temperatures soaring towards record highs, news agencies reported a day ago, adding that people are heading to lakes to cool off as the heatwave sweeps western Russia. Daytime temperatures in Moscow are forecast at 30-35 degrees Celsius in the coming days and could break record highs on three days this week that have stood since 1936, 1951, and 2010, the RIA news agency reported.

Taking global warming as a cue, Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that his government is willing to work with the US to battling climate change, a rare area of common ground between the nations.

In a phone call with US climate envoy John Kerry on Wednesday, Putin said that Moscow and Washington have "common interests and similar approaches" when it comes to the "climate problem". He also told the former US secretary of state that Moscow "attaches great importance" to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement and "advocates de-politicising" dialogue on climate change.

CHINA TIGHTENS CONTROL OVER CYBERSECURITY IN DATA CRACKDOWN

Tech experts in China who find a weakness in computer security would be required to tell the government and couldn’t sell that knowledge under rules further tightening the Communist Party’s control over information.

The rules would ban private sector experts who find “zero day,” or previously unknown security weaknesses, and sell the information to police, spy agencies or companies. Such vulnerabilities have been a feature of major hacking attacks including one this month blamed on a Russian-linked group that infected thousands of companies in at least 17 countries.

Beijing is increasingly sensitive about control over information about its people and economy. Companies are barred from storing data about Chinese customers outside China. Companies including ride-hailing service Didi Global Inc., which recently made its U.S. stock market debut, have been publicly warned to tighten data security.

Under the new rules, anyone in China who finds a vulnerability must tell the government, which will decide what repairs to make. No information can be given to “overseas organizations or individuals” other than the product's manufacturer.

No one may “collect, sell or publish information on network product security vulnerabilities,” say the rules issued by the Cyberspace Administration of China and the police and industry ministries. They take effect Sept. 1.

FORMER PAKISTAN PRESIDENT MAMNOON HUSSAIN PASSES AWAY

Former president of Pakistan Mamnoon Hussain passed away here on Wednesday, July 14, 2021, after a prolonged illness, according to his family and party leaders. He was 80.

Hussain, who was born in Agra in 1940 and migrated with his parents to Pakistan in 1947, served as the 12th President of Pakistan between September 2013 and September 2018.

The senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader was diagnosed with cancer in February last year and was under treatment at a private hospital here for some days where he breathed his last, Dawn newspaper quoted PML-N Sindh additional secretary general Chaudhry Tariq as saying.

President Alvi expressed sorrow over Hussain's demise, saying he shared the pain of his bereaved family.