Author: Steven Sahiounie

The executive director of the World Food Programme David Beasley said, on Tuesday, that millions of Afghans could soon face starvation due to a combination of conflict, drought, and the coronavirus pandemic, calling on political leaders to act fast. Speaking from Doha, Beasley said that there’s a perfect storm coming because of several years of drought, conflict, economic deterioration, compounded by Covid-19. “The number of people marching towards starvation has spiked to now 14 million.” Beasley went on to say that the international community faced some very difficult decisions, warning it would be “hell on earth” for the people of…

A study published on Tuesday showed that diabetes in young adults nearly doubled in the United States from 2001 to 2017. The results showed that the proportion of young people aged 10 to 19 years with type 2 diabetes increased by 95% over 16 years, whereas the estimated proportion of young people under 20 with type 1 diabetes increased by 45%. “Rising rates of diabetes, particularly type 2 diabetes, which is preventable, has the potential to create a cascade of poor health outcomes,” said Dr. Giuseppina, who oversees disease follow-up and other areas at the US Centers for Disease Control…

New research results indicated that llama antibodies could soon play a role in the fight against the Coronavirus. Clinical trials are currently being conducted by the Belgian VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology. Based on these trials’ findings, researchers say that the mammal’s antibodies have blunted the virulence of coronavirus infections, including variants. New technology is a “game-changer”, Chief Medical Officer of VIB-UGent spin-off ExeVir Dominique Tersago said, explaining that it can supplement rather than replace vaccines by protecting people with weaker immune systems and treating infected people in the hospital. Why can llama’s fight COVID? Tests indicated that small llama…

At least 15 people died in western Venezuela because of torrential rains that caused floods, landslides, and cuts in electricity and communications, authorities said Tuesday. In a televised speech, President Nicolas Maduro said that more than 35,000 people were “directly affected by these rains” in 11 states, and more than 8,000 homes were “destroyed”. On his part, Interior Minister Remijo Ceballos reported that the thunderstorm season has arrived in Venezuela this year a little premature and that rain is expected to continue. In the worst-affected state of Merida (west), State Governor Ramon Guevara said that “the Mocotes River overflowed and…

The largest cryptocurrency heist of all time comes to a very unusual end. It was resolved by the hacker himself. This month, Poly Network, a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform, had reported on August 10th that $611 million worth of cryptocurrency was stolen in an attack. The thief apparently exploited a vulnerability in their code, allowing them to transfer the funds into his own accounts. However, instead of running off with the money, the hacker, known as Mr. White Hat, immediately reached out to the Network and began returning the funds he stole, with two exceptions: roughly $33 million in USDT tokens, which…

Official data showed today, Tuesday, that the value of Saudi Arabia’s oil exports in June increased 123% to $16.4 billion, while non-oil exports increased by around 41%. Overall exports increased by nearly 92% in June compared to a year earlier when international trade was curbed due to lockdowns and travel disruptions related to the coronavirus pandemic, said the General Authority for Statistics. Oil exports were counted for 72% of total exports in June, up from 62% in June last year, it said. Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, was affected last year as oil prices plummeted and COVID-19 pandemic…

Yesterday, Tuesday, the World Bank announced the suspension of aid to Afghanistan after the “Taliban” took power in the country, noting that at the same time, it is in search of ways to continue to support the Afghan people. “We have paused disbursements in our operations in Afghanistan and we are closely monitoring and assessing the situation in line with our internal policies and procedures,” a World Bank spokesperson told the AFP. She also cited concerns over how the Taliban’s takeover will impact “the country’s development prospects.” The spokesperson did not clarify how much the World Bank was supposed to pay…

On Wednesday, China lifted health restrictions imposed on one of the largest ports in the world, partially suspended since August after the emergence of the coronavirus. Ningbo Zhoushan, 250 kilometers south of Shanghai, is one of China’s major shipping ports. Last year, 1.2 billion tons of goods passed through this port, which is the third in the world for exports. After a port worker was detected positive for the virus, the Mechane Fee terminal, which was capable of accomodating ten million containers, was closed. The public television CCTV, citing a memorandum issued by the local authorities, stated that health restrictions imposed…

US President Joe Biden said that the success of the airlift mission in Afghanistan will largely depend on the cooperation of the “Taliban” Movement, adding that he asked military leaders to have a plan prepared for the possibility of adjusting the schedule if necessary. Biden confirmed that his country is on its way to complete the evacuation operations by August 31, expressing his determination to fulfill the task, yet only if the Taliban continues to cooperate. He also pointed out that any delay in the evacuation process puts the forces at risk.  In this context, Biden said, “Every day we’re…

The Kingdom of Morocco announced that it “regrets” Algeria’s decision to cut diplomatic ties. The Moroccan Foreign Ministry’s statement read, “Morocco has taken note of the unilateral decision of the Algerian authorities to sever diplomatic relations with Morocco starting this day,” rejecting the pretexts underlying Algeria’s decision. In the first reaction to Algeria’s decision, the Arab Parliament called on Morocco and Algeria to allow brotherly ties between the two countries to prevail, stating that the ties between the two countries demand that they show restraint and avoid escalating tensions. Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra announced on Tuesday that his country has severed…