Security Breached as Thousands Protest at DNC
The Democratic National Convention (DNC) kicked off on Monday, August 19th, with the primary goal of formally nominating the democratic presidential nominee and unifying the party ahead of the upcoming presidential election. Kamala Harris and her vice president pick, Tim Walz, were formally chosen as the presidential nominee, with many other democrats including Oprah Winfrey, the Obamas, Hillary Clinton, and President Joe Biden giving speeches. The convention took place in Chicago, home to the largest Palestinian population in the country. Almost 200 groups joined together to protest and pressure the Democratic party to stop the war in Gaza. On Monday, thousands had gathered to protest and broke through the perimeter security of the convention center.
Ukraine pushes the fight into Russia’s borders
In a new development in the Russia-Ukraine War, Ukraine has crossed the Russian border in a surprise cross-border offensive, the biggest assault on Russian soil since the war began and have taken out key bridges in the western part of the country. Ukrainian troops quickly took over Russia’s western Kursk region on August 6th, taking about 480 square miles of Russian territory. This has caused around 133,000 Russian civilians to be evacuated from the Kursk region. Continuing their assault by air, on Wednesday, Russian authorities claimed that they intercepted and destroyed 45 Ukrainian drones sent to attack the Russian capital Moscow.
Monkeypox Declared International Emergency as Outbreak Grows
On August 14th, the World Health Organization (WHO) director, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, declared an international public health emergency on the upsurge of monkeypox in Africa. The major outbreak started in central Africa and is expected to spread to the whole continent and possibly other continents. The disease is zoonotic, meaning it can be spread from animal to human, as well as person-to-person. Monkeypox has many symptoms; most common being rashes all over the body, headaches, fever, exhaustion, and body chills. In 2023, the U.S. experienced an outbreak of the virus, mostly among men, with more than 32,000 people infected. However, the CDC states that the U.S. is at “very low risk.”
Deadly protests erupt in Kenya
In Kenya, protests have erupted after the government proposed tax hikes in response to the country’s crippling debt. Although mostly peaceful, a group of demonstrators stormed the police barricades on June 25th and lit the parliament building on fire. In response, Kenyan police used tear gas on peaceful protests and opened fire, resulting in the deaths of 39 protesters, most of whom were young people. Protestors have also taken to social media with the hashtag #REJECTFINANCEBILL2024. In light of the recent events, the president of Kenya backed down and announced that he would cut the proposed tax increase.
