Only a ceasefire deal in Gaza will delay an Iranian retaliation strike for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Iranian officials have said. Officials have also said that Iran, along with ally Hezbollah, will launch a direct attack if the Gaza ceasefire talks, which should resume tomorrow, fail or if they consider Israel to drag out negotiations. Reportedly, on US initiative, three regional government sources have asked Iran to avoid escalation in an attempt to calm the tensions in the region. Iran has not publicly indicated what would be the target of a retaliatory attack, but it is considered certain that Iran will follow up on its promise of revenge.
Russian forces have begun striking back at Ukrainian troops with missiles, drones and airstrikes. According to a Russian commander this response has halted Ukraine’s advance after the biggest attack on sovereign Russian territory since the war began. Ukraine however claims that it is still advancing, making gains of one to three km in the last 24 hours and now controls 74 settlements. Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that Ukraine isn’t interested in ‘taking territory’ but will continue its offensive in Russia until Moscow agrees to peace. Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused Ukraine of committing crimes against Russian people and has promised a worthy response.
Africa’s top health body has declared Mpox a public health emergency. Mpox is a highly infectious disease, otherwise known as monkeypox. Scientists from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) say they are alarmed by the speed at which a new strand of mpox has been spreading. Since the beginning of the year, almost 14.000 cases and 450 deaths have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The disease, which can cause lesions across the whole body, has spread to other African countries, including Burundi, Kenya and Rwanda. If left untreated, mpox can be deadly. There are vaccines but only people at risk or who have been in close contact with an infected person have access to it.
The EU is to provide emergency support to help tackle the wildfires in Greece and Albania. The aid consists of both aerial and ground firefighting resources, which will be provided by EU member states under the EU’s Civil Protection Mechanism. Support includes two firefighting planes, a helicopter, and firefighting teams on the ground. Albania will receive a multipurpose military plane from Romania which can carry up to 6 tonnes of water. The EU Civil Protection Mechanism plays a key role in disaster response in Europe and can be requested by individual member states and 10 participating non-EU countries.
