ONS: 6 August 2018

By TRG Alerts Admin

KEY STORYLINES

AFRICA: South Sudan President Salva Kiir and rival Riek Machar signed a power-sharing deal, a prelude to a peace agreement following five years of civil war.
AMERICAS: The Brazilian Workers’ Party named former Sao Paulo mayor Fernando Haddad as the running mate of currently jailed Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva for the presidential election.
ASIA: An earthquake in Indonesia measuring 6.9 struck the tourist island of Lombok, killing at least 91 with rescue operations ongoing.
EUROPE: German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said he hoped for a breakthrough this week in talks with Italy and Greece on taking back asylum-seekers already registered in those countries.
MIDDLE EAST: Saudi Arabia cut trade ties with Canada and expelled the Canadian ambassador, after receiving a demand to release an imprisoned human rights campaigner.
TECHNOLOGY: Most of U.S. conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ podcasts from his right-wing media platform Infowars have been removed from Apple’s iTunes and podcast apps.

TOP STORY

Venezuela: Arrests and confusion following yesterday’s assassination attempt on President Maduro.
- Two small drones exploded, targeting Maduro during an address to the National Guard.
- Seven soldiers were wounded, while Maduro escaped unharmed.
- Six suspects have been arrested, allegedly opposition members. One reportedly had an outstanding arrest warrant for a 2017 attack on a military base.
- A virtually unknown group called The National Movement of Soldiers in T-Shirts claimed responsibility, but with no evidence or further comment.
- Maduro blamed neighboring Colombia for the attack, while the military issued a statement fiercely backing the President.
- The incident has heightened concerns about the use of small private drones in public.
- Reporting: AP, Reuters, AFP, Reuters2, BBC

AFRICA

Ethiopia: Residents in the volatile Somali region reported riots, looting and ethnic attacks, as the US embassy in Addis Ababa advised its citizens to avoid the region. (AFP)
Mali: The three main opposition presidential candidates announced they were mounting a legal challenge in the constitutional court alleging “ballot box-stuffing” and other irregularities. (AFP)
South Sudan: President Salva Kiir and rival Riek Machar signed a power-sharing deal in Sudan, a prelude to a peace agreement following five years of civil war. (AFP)

AMERICAS

Brazil: The leftist Workers’ Party named former Sao Paulo mayor Fernando Haddad as the running mate of currently jailed Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva for the presidential election. (AFP)
Nicaragua: The Nicaraguan Pro-Human Rights Association said it is closing its offices that have been besieged by “unauthorized armed groups and threatening phone calls.” (AP)
United States: The State Department called in Russia’s chargé d’affaires in Washington over Moscow’s efforts to use social media to “promote violence” and divide U.S. society. (RFE-RL)

ASIA

Cambodia: Prime Minister Hun Sen said he will give a speech to the United Nations General Assembly after claiming victory in a much-criticized election last month. (Reuters)
China: State media lashed out at U.S. President Donald Trump in an unusually direct attack, accusing him of “starring in his own carefully orchestrated street fighter-style deceitful drama”. (Reuters)
Indonesia: An earthquake measuring 6.9 struck the tourist island of Lombok, killing at least 91 with rescue operations ongoing. (AP)
North Korea: State media urged the United States to drop sanctions, as South Korea said it was investigating nine cases of coal shipments that potentially violated U.N. resolutions. (Reuters)

EUROPE

Region: Brussels is looking at limiting the legal power the EU would wield over Northern Ireland as part of contentious “backstop” plans, as it seeks to “de-dramatize” what negotiators regard as the biggest remaining obstacle to a Brexit deal. (FT)
Region: German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said he hoped for a breakthrough this week in talks with Italy and Greece on taking back asylum-seekers already registered in those countries. (AFP)
Italy: Deputy PM Luigi Di Maio said respecting EU fiscal rules is not the priority of the new government though it will try to abide by them if they do not hamper its reform agenda. (Reuters)

MIDDLE EAST

Region: Saudi Arabia granted a visa to an Iranian diplomat to work in a consular office in Jeddah, state media reported, in a rare sign of a thaw between the rival powers. (AFP)
Iraq: The election commission said it had completed a manual recount of votes from a parliamentary election held in May, after deciding to cut the process short in Baghdad. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabia: The Foreign Ministry cut trade ties with Canada and expelled the Canadian ambassador, after receiving a demand to release an imprisoned human rights campaigner. (AFP)

TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATIONS

Communication: Most of U.S. conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ podcasts from his right-wing media platform Infowars have been removed from Apple’s iTunes and podcast apps. (Reuters)

WORLD

Cyclones:
- Tropical Storm Ileana
  - Location: 185 NM S-SE of Acapulco, Mexico
  - Movement: W-NW at 11 MPH
  - Wind: 50 MPH
  - Map
- Tropical Storm John
  - Location: 310 NM S-SW of Manzanillo, Mexico
  - Movement: NW at 7 MPH
  - Wind: 40 MPH
  - Map
- Typhoon Shanshan
  - Location: 284 NM E-NE of Iwo To, Japan
  - Movement: N-NW at 9 MPH
  - Wind: 90 MPH
  - Map
Hurricanes:
- Hurricane Hector
  - Location: 1130 NM E-SE of South Point, Hawaii
  - Movement: W at 12 MPH
  - Wind: 140 MPH
  - Map
Earthquakes:
- Location: Loloan, Indonesia
- Magnitude: 6.9
- Depth: 31 KM
- Casualties: 91
- USGS
Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
Global Disease Outbreaks:

TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK (07 AUG)

END