Kenya’s health minister warns Africa must prepare for aftershocks of US’ exit from WHO, funding pause
Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa pointed out that achieving this goal requires strengthening components of health security and ensuring the implementation of Universal Health Coverage that guarantees affordable, accessible, and quality care for all.
Risk of pandemics explosion worldwide rises as Trump orders CDC to stop working with WHO
President Donald Trump last week issued an executive order to begin the process of withdrawing the US from WHO, but that did not take immediate effect. Leaving WHO requires the approval of Congress and that the US meets its financial obligations for the current fiscal year. The US also must provide a one-year notice.
Sixty senior career officials at USAID suspected to have been hostile to Trump placed on ‘excused absence’
Those being put on leave comprised career staff in the leadership positions of almost all USAID bureaus based in Washington, with roles ranging from energy security to water security, children’s education and digital technology, two of the sources said. Staff in the agency’s general counsel’s office were among those targeted.
Conflicted CIA director nominee: Why Democrats and world are worried about John Ratcliffe’s role in 2020 US election mess
As is customary for government officials, Ratcliffe has vowed to avoid “any actual or apparent conflict of interest” by selling stocks and recusing himself from any matter in which he had a personal stake. For Hauser, however, that does not erase the risk that his ties to the industry will affect his judgment on a technology that many critics say has yet to prove its usefulness.
Jordan and Egypt supported by Arab world reject Trump’s call to grant asylum to Palestinians from Gaza
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has repeatedly called for the return of Jewish settlers to Gaza, welcomed Trump’s call as “an excellent idea” and said he would work to develop a plan to implement it. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected such notions, advocated by Smotrich.
Trump responds to Colombia’s rejection of deported migrants with hefty tariffs, citing ‘legal obligations’ to accept ‘return of criminals they forced into the United States’
Brazil’s foreign ministry late on Saturday condemned “degrading treatment” of Brazilians after migrants were handcuffed on a commercial deportation flight. Upon arrival, some of the passengers also reported mistreatment during the flight, according to local news reports.
How gain-of-function research, pandemics and efforts to push mpox vaccine in Africa contributed to US exit from WHO
President Donald Trump’s move to exit WHO came as no surprise. As early as December 2023, his transition team was pushing for an exit from the WHO on day one of the new administration. US law requires a one-year notice and the payment of any outstanding fees when the country withdraws from the WHO. That means the final full withdrawal will take effect in early 2026.
VP Vance: US spy agencies were out of control, used to weaponise politics and justice system
Gabbard’s selection in November to be director of national intelligence sent shock waves through the national security establishment, adding to concerns that the intelligence community would become increasingly politicised.
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels kill least 14 foreign peacekeepers as they advance towards Goma city in eastern Congo
On Saturday, Congo’s army said it fended off an M23 offensive towards Goma with the help of its allied forces, including UN troops and soldiers from the Southern African Development Community Mission, also known as SAMIDRC.
WHO chief accuses rebel Rapid Support Forces of killing 70, injuring 19 people in attack on hospital in Sudan’s Darfur region
Officials and others in the capital of North Darfur province had cited a similar figure on Saturday, but Ghebreyesus is the first international source to provide a casualty number. Reporting on Sudan is incredibly difficult given communication challenges, the indiscriminate violence faced by civilians and exaggerations by both the RSF and the Sudanese military.
