Africa’s CDC declares mpox a public health emergency

Christian Musema, a laboratory nurse, takes a sample from a child declared a suspected case of Mpox at the treatment centre in Munigi, following Mpox cases in Nyiragongo territory near Goma, North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of the Congo July 19, 2024. (REUTERS)
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Updated 14 August 2024
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Africa’s CDC declares mpox a public health emergency

NAIROBI: The African Union’s health watchdog on Tuesday declared a public health emergency over the growing mpox outbreak on the continent, saying the move is a “clarion call for action.”
The outbreak has swept through several African countries, particularly the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus formerly called monkeypox was first discovered in humans in 1970.
“With a heavy heart but with an unyielding commitment to our people, to our African citizens, we declare mpox as public health emergency of continental security,” Jean Kaseya, head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), said during an online media briefing.
“Mpox has now crossed borders, affecting thousands across our continent, families have been torn apart and the pain and suffering have touched every corner of our continent,” he said.
According to CDC data as of August 4, there had been 38,465 cases of mpox and 1,456 deaths in Africa since January 2022.
“This declaration is not merely a formality, it is a clarion call to action. It is a recognition that we can no longer afford to be reactive. We must be proactive and aggressive in our efforts to contain and eliminate this threat,” Kaseya said.
It is the first time the Addis Ababa-headquartered agency has used the continental security power it was given in 2022.
The decision is expected to help to mobilize money and other resources early in any efforts to halt the spread of disease.
Boghuma Titanji, assistant professor in medicine at Emory University in the United States, said the CDC declaration was a “crucial step” toward enhancing coordination among African countries and encouraging them to allocate funds to combat the outbreak.
“While there has been substantial criticism of foreign donors for inadequate support, the over-reliance on external aid has highlighted a major flaw in the current response efforts,” Titanji said in a statement.

CDC’s announcement on Tuesday comes ahead of a meeting of the World Health Organization’s emergency committee on August 14 to decide whether to trigger a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) — the highest alarm the WHO can sound.
“What we are declaring today can be complemented by the action WHO can take,” Kaseya said.
The United States said it was in “close coordination” on mpox with DR Congo, other affected countries and health bodies.
“We are tracking closely the spread of mpox in Central Africa. We are pleased to see international leadership in this area,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.
He said that the United States so far this year has contributed $17 million beyond already programmed assistance to help African countries prepare and respond to mpox.
In May 2022, mpox infections surged worldwide, mostly affecting gay and bisexual men, due to the Clade IIb strain.
That led the WHO to declare a PHEIC, which lasted from July 2022 to May 2023. The outbreak caused some 140 deaths out of around 90,000 cases.
Titanji, a Cameroonian-born doctor, said that declaration did not however “lead to significant- improved access to diagnostics, therapeutics, or vaccines for African countries.”
Renamed from monkeypox in 2022, mpox is an infectious disease caused by a virus transmitted to humans by infected animals but can also be passed from human to human through close physical contact.
The disease causes fever, muscular aches and large boil-like skin lesions.
There are two subtypes of the virus: the more virulent and deadlier Clade I, endemic in the Congo Basin in central Africa; and Clade II, endemic in West Africa.
The cases that have been surging in the DRC since September 2023 are due to a different strain: the Clade Ib subclade.
A PHEIC has been declared by the WHO seven times since 2009: over H1N1 swine flu, poliovirus, Ebola, Zika virus, Ebola again, Covid-19 and mpox.
 

 


UPDATE 1-Putin says he hopes there will be no need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine

Updated 15 sec ago
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UPDATE 1-Putin says he hopes there will be no need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine

  • Fear of nuclear escalation has been a factor in US officials’ thinking since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022
MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin said in comments broadcast on Sunday said that the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine had not arisen, and that he hoped it would not arise.
In a fragment of an upcoming interview with Russian state television published on Telegram, Putin said that Russia has the strength and the means to bring the conflict in Ukraine to a “logical conclusion.”
Responding to a question about Ukrainian strikes on Russia from a state television reporter, Putin said: “There has been no need to use those (nuclear) weapons ... and I hope they will not be required.”
He said: “We have enough strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 to a logical conclusion with the outcome Russia requires.”
Putin in February 2022 ordered tens of thousands of Russian troops into Ukraine, in what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation” against its neighbor.
Though Russian troops were repelled from Kyiv, Moscow’s forces currently control around 20 percent of Ukraine, including much of the south and east.
Putin has in recent weeks expressed willingness to negotiate a peace settlement, as US President Donald Trump has said he wants to end the conflict via diplomatic means.
Fear of nuclear escalation has been a factor in US officials’ thinking since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Former CIA Director William Burns has said there was a real risk in late 2022 that Russia could use nuclear weapons against Ukraine.

Chinese president to visit Russia on May 7-10

Updated 26 min 45 sec ago
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Chinese president to visit Russia on May 7-10

MOSCOW : Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Russia on May 7-10 and join Vladimir Putin at the 80th commemoration of the Allied victory against Nazi Germany, the Kremlin said on Sunday.
The Russian president’s office said Xi would also hold bilateral talks with Putin and the two were expected to sign “a series of bilateral documents.”


Vehicle crashes into entrance at Manila airport, killing 2 people including a 4-year-old girl

Updated 04 May 2025
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Vehicle crashes into entrance at Manila airport, killing 2 people including a 4-year-old girl

  • Dozens of emergency personnel could be seen at Ninoy Aquino International Airport surrounding a black SUV that had rammed into a wall by an entrance

MANILA, Philippines: A vehicle crashed into an entrance at Manila’s airport on Sunday morning, leaving two people dead including a 4-year-old girl, according to the Philippine Red Cross.
The other victim was an adult male, the humanitarian group said in a statement.
Other people were injured in the incident and the driver of the vehicle was in police custody, according to the airport’s operator, New NAIA Infra Co, and the Red Cross.
Dozens of emergency personnel could be seen at Ninoy Aquino International Airport surrounding a black SUV that had rammed into a wall by an entrance. The vehicle was later removed from the site.
The airport operator said it is coordinating with the authorities to investigate the incident.


Australia’s reelected government says US-China tussle a top priority

Updated 04 May 2025
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Australia’s reelected government says US-China tussle a top priority

  • Government sees US-China trade war, global economy as priorities
  • Albanese emphasizes disciplined government, unity after decisive reelection victory

SYDNEY, Australia: Australia’s Labor government will prioritize dealing with the “dark shadow” of the US-China trade war following its resounding re-election victory, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Sunday, after a campaign that highlighted concerns over US trade policy and the global economy.
Labour Party leader Anthony Albanese, Australia’s first prime minister to win a second consecutive term in two decades, promised in remarks on Sunday that he would run a disciplined and orderly government, stressing that Australians had voted for unity.
The center-left Labour Party appeared likely to expand its majority in parliament to at least 86 seats from 77, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. projected, after most polls had suggested it would struggle to keep its slim hold on the 150-seat lower house. About three-quarters of votes have been tallied, with counting to resume on Monday.
Echoing an election in Canada less than a week earlier, Australia’s conservative opposition leader, Peter Dutton, lost his seat as voters, who initially focused on cost-of-living pressures, grew increasingly concerned over US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs and other policies.
“We will be a disciplined, orderly government in our second term, just like we have been in our first,” Albanese told reporters while visiting a coffee shop in his Sydney electorate where he said his late mother took him as a child.
“The Australian people voted for unity rather than division,” Albanese added in brief public comments.
Polls had shown Labor trailing the opposition conservative coalition for nine months until March, amid widespread angst about the government’s handling of inflation.
But the polls flipped when the conservatives unveiled a proposal to slash the federal workforce, which was compared to the Trump administration’s moves to cut back government agencies. A proposal to force federal workers back to the office five days a week was also criticized as unfair to women.
Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement added to voters’ unease as it sent shockwaves through global markets and raised concerns about the impact on their pension funds.
“The immediate focus is on global economic uncertainty, US and China, and what it means for us,” Treasurer Jim Chalmers told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
“What’s happening, particularly between the US and China, does cast a dark shadow over the global economy ... We need to have the ability, and we will have the ability, to manage that uncertainty.”
Representatives of the US and China joined leaders from around the world congratulating Albanese and his party.
The US “looks forward to deepening its relationship with Australia to advance our common interests and promote freedom and stability in the Indo-Pacific and globally,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
A spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry said the country “stands ready to work with the new Australian government (to) continue advancing a more mature, stable, and productive comprehensive strategic partnership.”
Senior figures in Australia’s conservative coalition meanwhile began apportioning blame for the loss as it begins the search for a new leader.
Mark Speakman, leader of the coalition’s main Liberal party for the state of New South Wales, said the party needed to connect its values of “aspiration, innovation and opportunity” to “modern day NSW, including for women and people from non-English speaking backgrounds.”
Simon Birmingham, a former finance minister who quit before the election, said in a LinkedIn post that “there must be a reshaping of the party to connect it with the modern Australian community.”
“Based on who’s not voting Liberal, it must start with women,” Birmingham wrote. “Based on where they’re not voting Liberal, it must focus on metropolitan Australia.”


Indian PM says Albanese re-election to strengthen ties

Updated 04 May 2025
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Indian PM says Albanese re-election to strengthen ties

  • India is expected to host a summit meeting of the Quad later this year

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese on Saturday on his general election victory, saying it would strengthen ties between the nations.
India has deepened defense cooperation with Australia in recent years as part of the Quad alliance with the United States and Japan, a grouping seen as a bulwark against China.
Modi said he looked forward to working together to “further deepen” ties with Australia and “advance our shared vision for peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific.”
India is expected to host a summit meeting of the Quad later this year.
“Congratulations on your resounding victory and re-election... This emphatic mandate indicates the enduring faith of the Australian people in your leadership,” Modi said on X.
Albanese wooed Modi during a visit to Australia in 2023, referring to him as the “boss” during a massive rally of Indian-Australians.
Modi had earlier hosted Albanese in India, when they performed a lap of honor aboard a cricket-themed golf cart before a Test match, and bonded over their countries’ shared love of the sport.