Wednesday, August 24th, 2022 

Germany and French rail transport manufacturer Alstom inaugurate the world’s first fleet of hydrogen fuel-powered trains in Lower Saxony. The 14 hydrogen trains will replace a fleet of diesel locomotives on 100 km (60 miles) of track in the German state. (Al Jazeera) 

Police arrest Kremlin critic Yevgeny Roizman, the former mayor of Yekaterinburg, for “discrediting the Russian army” by criticizing the invasion of Ukraine. (Al Arabiya) 

The Russian-appointed head of Mykhailivka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ivan Sushko, is assassinated in a car bombing. (Euro Weekly News) 

U.S. President Joe Biden orders airstrikes against Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-linked groups in Syria following a series of rocket attacks on al-Tanf military base. The U.S. strikes targeted eleven bunkers in Deir ez-Zor used to store weapons, according to United States Central Command. (CNN) 

Fighting resumes between the Ethiopian military and the Tigray Defense Forces in the Tigray Region. Both sides blame each other for breaking the ceasefire. (The Guardian) 

Tuvalu declares a drought and a shortage of potable water in three of its islands; Nanumea, Nui, and Niutao. (RNZ) 

Angolans vote to elect their president in a tight race between incumbent leftist candidate João Lourenço and center-right Adalberto Costa Júnior. (MSN) 

The Constitutional Court of Thailand temporarily suspends Prayut Chan-o-cha’s premiership due to a case filed by Pheu Thai Party lawmakers over whether the eight-year term limit for premiership should also include Prayut’s time as the leader of National Council for Peace and Order. Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan has taken over the premiership while the case is being heard. (Reuters) 

Tuesday,  August 23rd, 2022 

The dugong is declared extinct in China after scientists report no verified sightings of the large marine mammal since 2000. However, dugongs still exist in the wild in parts of Southeast Asia and Australasia. (BBC) 

Ukrainian forces reportedly shell the administration headquarters of the Donetsk People’s Republic in separatist-held Donetsk, killing three people, according to pro-Russian officials. (Reuters) 

Slovakia announces that it will send an additional 30 BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles and ammunition to Ukraine. (Reuters) 

According to the Libyan National Army, a United States-manufactured MQ-9 Reaper drone was shot down with a surface-to-air missile, crashing near Benina International Airport in Benghazi, Libya. (Eurasian Times) 

South Korea registers a population decrease for the second consecutive year, due to having the world’s lowest birth rate. (Xinhua) 

The Federal Court of Malaysia upholds the corruption conviction and 12-year prison term of former prime minister Najib Razak in connection with the embezzlement of sovereign wealth funds from 1Malaysia Development Berhad. Najib is the first former Malaysian prime minister to be imprisoned. (NPR) 

Two men are found guilty of conspiring to obtain a weapon of mass destruction for use in the kidnapping. One of the men is also convicted of an explosives charge. (AP) 

Brazilian police conduct eight raids on pro-Bolsonaro businessmen accused of discussing the possibility of a coup d’état if incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro loses the upcoming presidential election. (Reuters) 

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announces an official inquiry into his predecessor Scott Morrison’s secret swearing of himself into various ministerial positions during his second ministry. (The Guardian) 

Monday,  August 22nd, 2022 

The exchange rate between the euro and the United States dollar drops to 0.9928, the lowest rate in 20 years. (Anadolu Agency) 

Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb visits Taiwan and meets with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. (ABC News) 

The United Arab Emirates announces the reinstallation of its ambassador to Iran, which will take effect “in the coming days”, more than six years after it cut off diplomatic relations with the Islamic republic. (CNA) 

Moderna announces that it will supply 12 million doses of its bivalent COVID-19 vaccine aimed at targeting the Omicron variant. (CBC) 

The cabinet of Pakistan approves the deployment of Pakistan Army troops to Qatar to provide security for the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup. (Reuters) 

A record 1,295 illegal migrants cross the English Channel to the United Kingdom on “small boats”, according to the Ministry of Defence. (France 24) 

The Pakistani police file terrorism charges against former Prime Minister Imran Khan. (NPR)

A federal prosecutor requests a 12-year sentence for former president and current vice president of Argentina Cristina Fernández de Kirchner on corruption related charges. (Reuters) 

Schools in the Philippines reopen for in-person classes after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. (WION) 

In tennis, world number 156 Borna Ćorić of Croatia becomes the lowest-ranked champion in the ATP Tour Masters 1000 after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in the men’s singles final of the 2022 Cincinnati Masters. (Philippine Daily Inquirer) 

World number 17 Caroline Garcia of France becomes the first qualifier to win a WTA 1000 tournament after defeating Petra Kvitová of the Czech Republic in the women’s singles final of the 2022 Cincinnati Masters. (Sportstar) 

A Mexican court issues the arrest warrants for 83 suspects, consisting of military personnel, police officers, administrative and judicial authorities, and members of the Guerreros Unidos syndicate, in connection with the abduction and disappearance of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College in Iguala, Guerrero, on September 26, 2014. (CNN) 

The End

Sunday, August 21st, 2022 

The siege at a hotel seized by al-Shabaab fighters in Mogadishu ends with the deaths of all of the attackers. Twenty-one people were killed aside from them, and 117 others were injured. (Al Jazeera) 

Sixteen people are killed and three others are injured as a lorry collides with a minibus in Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia. (Reuters) 

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says that Singapore will decriminalize gay sex between men, which is illegal under a colonial-era law, while at the same time they will amend the Constitution to define marriage as a heterosexual union. (Channel News Asia) 

A car bomb outside Moscow kills Darya Dugina, the daughter of Aleksandr Dugin, a far-right political philosopher, who was due to travel in the same car. (RTVI) (The Guardian) 

Oleksandr Nakonechny, regional head of the Security Service of Ukraine in Kirovohrad Oblast, is found shot dead in his apartment. (Al Jazeera) 

Saturday, August 20th, 2022 

Nine civilians, including four children, are injured by Russian shelling on a residential building in Voznesensk, Mykolaiv Oblast, according to regional governor Vitaliy Kim. (The Washington Post) 

Russia says that a number of its soldiers in Zaporizhzhia have been poisoned by Ukraine, with tests showing Botulinum toxin type B present in their bodies. (Reuters) 

Sixteen people are killed and 21 others are injured when a bus crashes into the scene of an earlier road accident in Gaziantep, Turkey. (BBC News) 

Twenty people are killed and 29 others are injured when a truck crashes into the scene of an earlier road accident involving three vehicles in Mardin, Turkey. (Al Jazeera) 

Fifteen people are killed and at least 28 others are injured in a rocket attack on a market in rebel-controlled Al-Bab, Aleppo Governorate, Syria. (AP) 

Russia’s Gazprom announces that the Nord Stream 1 natural gas pipeline will be shut down for 3 days of unscheduled maintenance between August 31 and September 2. (Reuters) 

The Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries says that a large overgrowth of toxic Prymnesium parvum algae linked to industrial pollution was likely the cause of the mass mortality event of fish in the Oder river. (Reuters) 

A Mexican court issues the arrest warrants for 83 suspects, consisting of military personnel, police officers, administrative and judicial authorities, and members of the Guerreros Unidos syndicate, in connection with the abduction and disappearance of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College in Iguala, Guerrero, on September 26, 2014. (CNN) 

The End

Friday,  August 19th, 2022 

Temperatures in Chongqing and Sichuan, China reach 45°C (113°F) during a historic drought. It is the highest temperature ever recorded in China outside of the Xinjiang desert. (AP News) 

Explosions are reported at military facilities in Crimea and Belgorod Oblast, Russia, and are believed to have been launched by Ukraine. An explosion and large fire occur at an arms depot near Timonovo. Explosions are also reported at Stary Oskol Airport and in Russian-occupied Nova Kakhovka, Kherson Oblast. (Forbes) 

Overnight, explosions are reported in Crimea and Belgorod Oblast, Russia, with two villages evacuated. (Reuters) 

Explosions are reported at Sevastopol International Airport. The Governor of Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev says that Russian air defences have shot down a Ukrainian Air Force drone near the airport. (Reuters) 

Residents of Kerch and nearby villages in eastern Crimea report multiple explosions. Crimean officials say that air defences were activated near the city but that “there is no danger to the town or the Crimean Bridge“. (Yahoo! News) 

Russia appoints former Krasnodar mayor Andrei Alekseyenko as the head of its Kharkiv military–civilian administration. (Reuters) 

Islamic State and “Beatles” cell member El Shafee Elsheikh is sentenced to eight life sentences by a United States district court for his role in the kidnapping and deaths of hostages James Foley, Steven Sotloff, Peter Kassig, and Kayla Mueller. (AP) 

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau nominates judge Michelle O’Bonsawin to the Supreme Court of Canada. An Abenaki member, O’Bonsawin would be the first Indigenous Canadian to sit on the country’s highest court. (Deutsche Welle) 

The government of Prime Minister of Montenegro Dritan Abazović collapses after the Parliament passes a vote of no-confidence following dispute within the coalition over an agreement the government signed with the Serbian Orthodox Church. (Reuters) 

Police in Nicaragua confirm that they have arrested an anti-Ortega Roman Catholic bishop in Managua and warned against further “provocative and destabilizing” activities amongst the clergy. (Infobae) 

Nine people are killed and 28 others are injured by a rocket attack on a market in Al-Bab, Aleppo Governorate, Syria. (Reuters) 

Thursday, August 18th, 2022 

Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi and Taiwanese minister John Deng announce that Taiwan and the United States will seek formal trade relations with each other, including cooperation on agricultural and digital trade, harmonizing anti-corruption standards, and addressing “significant distortions” caused by state-owned enterprises. (BBC News) 

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin says that China will oppose any trade deals with the Taiwanese government and also told the U.S. government to “stop making misjudgements”. Commerce Ministry spokesperson Shu Jueting also says that China will take steps to safeguard its interests.  (Reuters) 

As the trial against 47 pro-democracy activists begins in Hong Kong, it is announced that 29 activists, including Joshua Wong and Benny Tai, will plead guilty and 18 activists, including Leung Kwok-hung, will plead not guilty. (Time) 

Mali accuses its former ally France of arming jihadist terrorist groups in order to destabilize the country. Malian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop tells the United Nations that French aircraft are violating the country’s airspace and dropping “arms and ammunition” to terrorist groups on the ground. France denies the accusations. (DW) 

Timane Erdimi, leader of the Chadian rebel group Rally of Forces for Change and nephew of slain Chadian president Idriss Déby, returns to the country from his 17-year exile in Qatar to participate in a peace process between the government and numerous rebel groups. (Reuters) 

The European Union statistics office reports that inflation in the Eurozone increased to a record 8.9% in July. (Reuters) 

The death toll from wildfires in Algeria increases to 38 with 200 others suffering from burns and respiratory problems. Firefighters are still trying to contain 39 forest fires in the north of the country, according to officials. (BBC News) 

Sixteen people are killed and 36 others are reported missing after heavy rain causes flooding in Datong Hui and Tu Autonomous County, Qinghai, China. (Reuters) 

A political organization in Guinea accuses military president Mamady Doumbouya of being behind the killings of two youths during anti-government protests yesterday. (Guinee28) 

President of Vanuatu Nikenike Vurobaravu dissolves the Parliament to prevent a no-confidence motion being debated against Prime Minister Bob Loughman. A snap election is expected to be called. (The Guardian) 

The End