Morning Briefing: August 23, 2024

By Alperen Aktas

ISTANBUL (AA) - Here’s a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Friday, including WHO reporting that mpox virus "does not spread the same way" as COVID-19, Russian President Vladimir Putin claiming Ukraine tried to strike the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu insisting on full control of the Philadelphi Corridor ahead of Gaza cease-fire talks in Egypt, and Tim Walz officially accepting nomination for the US vice president at the Democratic National Convention.

TOP STORIES

Mpox virus ‘doesn’t spread the same way’ as COVID-19: WHO

The contact-transmitted mpox virus is not the same as the airborne COVID-19 virus, and they do not “spread the same way,” a World Health Organization (WHO) official said.

Maria Van Kerkhove, the director of the Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention of WHO, and Otim Patrick Ramadan, the team leader of the Acute Events Management of WHO Regional Office for Africa, spoke about mpox virus during an online program they held on X.

“We're not seeing the same situation unfold,” Kerkhove said, referring to the course of the coronavirus.

Putin claims Ukraine tried to strike Kursk Nuclear Power Plant

Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Ukraine tried to strike the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant situated in the border region of the same name, where Kyiv launched an incursion over two weeks ago.

“The enemy tried to strike the (Kursk) nuclear power plant last night,” Putin told a meeting in the capital Moscow on the situation in the border regions of Belgorod, Bryansk, and Kursk.

Expressing that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had been informed of the situation, Putin said the IAEA promised to send specialists to assess the situation at the plant.

Netanyahu insists on full control of Philadelphi Corridor ahead of Gaza cease-fire talks in Egypt

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still insists on maintaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor in the southern Gaza Strip on the border with Egypt, the public broadcaster KAN said.

"The prime minister has not changed his position on the need for Israeli control and presence in the Philadelphi Corridor,” KAN said, citing an Israeli political source.

Netanyahu had a phone call on Wednesday with US President Joe Biden amid an impasse in Gaza cease-fire and prisoner swap negotiations.

Tim Walz officially accepts nomination for US vice president at Democratic National Convention

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz officially accepted the nomination for US vice president at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois.

On the biggest stage of his political career, Walz touted his accomplishments for the people who elected him to office in his home state.

"We cut taxes for the middle class. We passed paid family and medical leave. We invested in fighting crime and affordable housing," said Walz, who emphasized affordability for America's middle-class families.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Palestine's envoy to the UN reiterated his call for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and invited the UN Security Council members to witness firsthand the "horror" endured by Palestinians.
  
  
• The UN warned of the adverse effects of Israel's mass evacuation orders in the Gaza Strip, saying such orders are endangering the lives of civilians.
  
  
• A house in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel was hit by a rocket fired from southern Lebanon, the Israeli media reported.
  
  
• The Israeli army demanded that Palestinians evacuate large areas in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, in preparation for a military offensive.
  
  
• Several UN Security Council Members, including the US, UK, and China, condemned Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, and urged the Israeli government to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
  
  
• Two US aircraft carriers in the Middle East have sent a "very powerful message" of deterrence to Iran, the Pentagon said.
  
  
• At least four Palestinians were killed and several others injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, according to multiple sources.
  
  
• At least 11 policemen were killed and another 10 injured after heavily armed bandits fired rockets on security vehicles in northeastern Pakistan, police said.
  
  
• Russia accused Ukraine of attacking a railway ferry in the southern city of Krasnodar.
  
  
• The humanitarian group Save the Children UK issued an urgent appeal to the UK government, calling for the immediate suspension of all arms sales to Israel.
  
  
• Turkish security forces “neutralized” 38 PKK/YPG terrorists in northern Iraq and northern Syria over the past week.
  
  
• An ongoing eruption at Whakaari/White Island volcano in New Zealand caused significant air travel disruptions in the Bay of Plenty region.
  
  
• Authorities in Thailand launched a search and rescue mission for nine people, including two pilots, who were on a light plane that crashed in the central part of the Southeast Asian country.
  
  
• The use of smartphones by students in primary and secondary schools in Belgium's French-speaking regions and the capital Brussels has been banned.
  
  
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that his country’s military captured another settlement in Russia’s border region of Kursk, where Kyiv launched an incursion over two weeks ago.
  
  
• China said it tracked the passage of a US warship through the Taiwan Strait.
  
  
• The US Embassy in Kyiv has warned its citizens of an increased risk of Russian airstrikes in the country in the coming days.
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• Zelenskyy said his country needs the Russian assets confiscated in the West for "real defense assistance."

SPORTS

Fulham announce signing of Norwegian midfielder Berge from Burnley

English Premier League club Fulham confirmed the inking of Sander Berge from Burnley for an undisclosed fee on a five-year deal.

"It feels fantastic. It’s been a little bit back and forth the last few weeks, but I’m finally sitting here in the shirt in this beautiful stadium, knowing that my future is here, which feels great," Berge said in a statement.

"Fulham has always been a team that excited me. I’ve played them both in the Championship and Premier League, and it’s fantastic how they play, 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1," he added.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

World crude steel production down annually in July

World crude steel production declined 4.7% on an annual basis in July, according to data from the World Steel Association.

Steel output from 71 countries reporting to the association fell to 152.8 million tons, data showed.

China, the world’s number one steel producer, saw 82.9 million tons of steel produced, down 9% year-on-year in July.