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Word of ebola reaching American shores caused many American media outlets to embarrass themselves with fear mongering headlines. The fact is, Ebola will not spread in the USA. Why? Because unlike Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone the USA has a strong health system in which infection control is a core function. “Every hospital that can do isolation can do ebola isolation,” said CDC chief Dr. Thomas Frieden at a press conference yesterday. He added that viral Hemorrhagic Fever (of which ebola is a type) has never spread in the USA. Bottom line: it’s reasonable to expect more imported cases of Ebola to the USA so long as the outbreak is spreading in West Africa. But the chances of an outbreak in the USA are exceedingly low.
Meanwhile, the WHO’s Ebola Emergency Response Mission is officially up and running. Its headquarters is in Accra, Ghana. (WHO http://bit.ly/1xyH0uK)
And: UNICEF warns that ebola orphans being shunned by their communities (Guardianhttp://bit.ly/1xyH6m6)
Africa
The UN Mission for Ebola wants to achieve significant progress in combating the deadly disease within 60 days, including ensuring that 70 percent of cases receive treatment, its new head Tony Banbury said. (Reuters http://bit.ly/YPWonv)
The trial of South African opposition party leader Julius Malema on corruption charges has been postponed until next year. (BBC http://bbc.in/1xyI4yX)
The rainy season in West Africa is compounding difficulties in getting supplies delivered and new treatment centres built as donors rush to isolate people infected with the deadly Ebola virus and stop its rapid spread, US officials said. (TRF http://bit.ly/ZpJCx2)
The International Monetary Fund said it would work with Zimbabwe to produce a debt repayment plan that would help Harare qualify for international loans. (Reuters http://bit.ly/ZpJy0t)
Guinean security forces are intensifying their Ebola screening efforts at the border with Sierra Leone. At the Madina Oula town crossing, people are subjected to rigorous health checks. (VOAhttp://bit.ly/ZpKmCq)
WFP and UNICEF say they have assisted more than 500,000 people in parts of South Sudan hit hardest by the country’s nine-month conflict. (VOA http://bit.ly/YPZtUs)
And for our French speaking DAWNSers, check out this new website http://sahelien.com/ coveringMali, Burkina Faso, and Niger
MENA
The UN’s humanitarian chief warned Tuesday that tens of thousands more people could be forced to flee Syria if Islamic State militants continue to make territorial gains. (VOA http://bit.ly/YPZIik)
European Union countries must cough up “considerable” resources for migrant rescues in the Mediterranean Sea before Italy can discontinue its own mission, or else many lives will be lost, human rights group Amnesty International said. (Reuters http://bit.ly/ZpJrlz)
Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq captured a border crossing with Syria on Tuesday, expelling Islamic State militants in heavy fighting that ground down to vicious house-to-house combat and close quarters sniping. (ABC http://abcn.ws/1xyHSQe)
Asia
Protesters camped out in Hong Kong for a fifth consecutive day are threatening to expand their campaign of civil disobedience if the territory’s chief executive does not meet their demand for democratic reforms. (VOA http://bit.ly/ZpK6Dv)
Myanmar has confirmed to the United Nations it is finalizing a plan that will offer minority Rohingya Muslims citizenship if they change their ethnicity to suggest Bangladeshi origin, a move rights groups say could force thousands into detention camps. (VOA http://bit.ly/ZpKhie)
Indigenous people experience dementia at a rate at least three times higher than the non-Indigenous population in Australia, but a lack of awareness of the seriousness of the issue means not enough is being done to combat a “looming epidemic”, the peak body for Alzheimer’s sufferers and their carers has said. (Guardian http://bit.ly/ZpLdTJ)
US President Barack Obama and new Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to expand and deepen their countries’ strategic partnership and make it a model for the rest of the world. (Reutershttp://yhoo.it/YQ2cgA)
Stunning timelapse satellite imagery of the Aral Sea drying up because of climate change. (WaPohttp://wapo.st/1xyHrW4)
The Americas
While the US tightens an economic embargo on its island neighbor, several African leaders were making a pilgrimage to Havana to strengthen bilateral relations. (IPS http://bit.ly/ZpJGgs)
Shipping firms should pressure the Nicaraguan government and the Chinese backer of a proposed canal to ensure that the project does not force indigenous people off their land and inflict massive environmental damage on the country’s ecosystem, an environmental advocacy group has urged. (Guardian http://bit.ly/ZpLd68)
A project funded by international development aid helps Cuban women entrepreneurs with the aim of closing the gender gap, as part of the economic reforms underway in this socialist Caribbean island nation. (IPS http://bit.ly/ZpJOMM)
California’s catastrophic drought has most likely been made worse by man-made climate change, according to a report released by Stanford University, but scientists are still hesitant to fully blame the lack of rain on climate change. (Reuters http://yhoo.it/ZpJXjw)
Opinion/Blogs
Analyst: West Cannot Win Prolonged Fight With Islamic State (VOA http://bit.ly/YPYL9O)
Understanding Latin America’s Financial Inclusion Gap (CGD http://bit.ly/YQ034z)
Female entrepreneurs an amazing engine for economic growth (Guardian http://bit.ly/YQ0H27)
The costs and economic impact of violence against children (ODI http://bit.ly/ZpLvKl)
“I’m Missing My Place in the World”: An Interview with Aziza Brahim (Think Africa Presshttp://bit.ly/ZpLzd1)
Why Hong Kong’s demand for democracy is not just another Occupy (GlobalPost http://bit.ly/YQ1U9q)
West Africa: Is World Up to Ebola Challenge? (Deutsche Welle http://bit.ly/ZpOouC)
Facing Death, Six Days a Week (USAID Impact http://1.usa.gov/1vvuIRv)