The World

This story may sound familiar. A major hack, with more than 1,000 businesses affected. According to cybersecurity experts, the Russia-based hacking group REvil is the source of the attack. Also, in South Africa, political tensions are growing after a court sentenced former president Jacob Zuma to prison for absconding from a corruption inquiry — a ruling that appears to strike at perceived official impunity. Zuma has struck back, comparing the judges to the white apartheid-era rulers he once fought. And, abortion activists and pro-choice gynecologists in ultra-Catholic Malta have created the country’s first free family-planning service.

One of the main symbols of US military presence in Afghanistan was the Bagram Air Base. Now, after 20 years, the last remaining American troops have left. And, the town slogan for Lytton, British Columbia, is “Canada’s hot spot." This week’s heat wave caused temperatures there to soar to 121 degrees Fahrenheit on Tuesday. Also, "The Last Kings of Shanghai," Jonathan Kaufman’s latest book, takes readers to 20th-century Shanghai, and explores the complicated legacies of two families.

Chinese President Xi Jingping gave a rousing speech to an overflowing crowd today in Tiananmen Square on the 100th anniversary of the founding of China’s Communist Party. President Xi certainly remains popular in China and so does his party. And, as parts of the US bake under extreme temperatures, we turn to Ahmedabad, a city that has made a huge investment in combating urban heat. Today, Turkey formally ended its participation in a European treaty to prevent violence against women. Also, the White House coronavirus response coordinator gave an update Thursday: 40 million doses will have shipped out by the end of this week to more than 40 countries.

July 1 is the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party in China. Shanghai, where Mao Zedong and 12 other men first laid the foundations for the party, is now the epicenter for celebrations. And earlier this week, the US conducted airstrikes against Iranian-backed militias in both Iraq and Syria. Just hours later, US forces also came under rocket attack. Where does Iraq stand in all of this? Also, with increased access to effective COVID-19 vaccines, many businesses are reopening and people are returning to work. If you’re feeling weird about it, you're not alone.

Taliban fighters have taken over several districts since the US announced its unconditional troop withdrawal. To counter the insurgents, some Afghans are taking up arms. And, Ethiopia declared a unilateral ceasefire in the Tigray region on Monday, putting an end to nearly eight months of fighting that pushed hundreds of thousands into starvation. Also, Guam's surplus of vaccines — and hotel vacancies — has inspired "Guam AirVnV."

Heat waves across the US, Canada, parts of Europe and Siberia brought soaring temps this week. And, after the killing of Black American George Floyd, several African countries urged the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to investigate police brutality in the US. The rights office conducted a global investigation, and the new report confirms that police brutality toward people of African descent has been allowed to continue with impunity. Also, in his new short story collection, “Alien Stories,” writer E.C. Osondu uses science fiction to explore the many meanings of “alien.”

An Afghan government delegation, including President Ashraf Ghani, is on a two-day visit to Washington, DC. Their message: Don’t leave Afghanistan to the Taliban. And, US Vice President Kamala Harris made her first trip to the US-Mexico border since taking office. Also, Nicaraguan political cartoonist Pedro X. Molina wants to see fair elections. He’s been living in exile in Ithaca, New York, and fled Nicaragua during a government crackdown on the press in 2018.

The Biden administration is reportedly preparing to evacuate thousands of Afghan interpreters and other local hires who assisted US forces over the past 20 years and now face threats from the Taliban. Also, the Cowessess First Nation in southern Saskatchewan said Wednesday that it has discovered hundreds of unmarked graves at the site of another former residential school for Indigenous children. Also, John McAfee, the security software pioneer and founder of McAfee Associates, was found dead in a Spanish prison on Wednesday. And, after a yearlong postponement, the Summer Olympics in Tokyo is now just a month away. But international opposition to the games continues.

As new COVID-19 variants emerge, health authorities around the world are racing to inoculate people, while facing often-disjointed rollouts and limited supplies of shots. As part of The World's regular series of conversations on the pandemic with Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and as a special episode in our podcast feed, reporter Elana Gordon moderated a discussion with a panel of experts on where we are now in the global coronavirus crisis.

Listen and watch more of the Coronavirus Conversations series here: https://www.theworld.org/coronavirus-conversations

The Apple Daily, Hong Kong’s biggest pro-democracy newspaper, is publishing its final issue. The move comes a week after authorities froze the outlet’s bank accounts, raided its offices and arrested top editors. And, Hambali, an Indonesian pegged as al-Qaeda’s mastermind in Southeast Asia, was accused of plotting the “second wave” of 9/11 attacks. Now, after languishing at Guantanamo, Hambali will get his day in court in Washington, DC, this summer. Also, a heat wave in Russia has people heading to Siberia to play in the permafrost and cool down.