Trump to name nominee for Supreme Court on 9 July

US President Donald Trump says he plans to announce his nominee for a new Supreme Court judge on 9 July. He told reporters on board the presidential aircraft Air Force One he had narrowed the choice down to "about five" candidates, including two women. The vacancy arose when Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement earlier this week.It gives giving President Trump the opportunity to solidify a conservative majority on the top court.

England lose to Belgium, will face Colombia in last 16

A brilliant strike by Adnan Januzaj lit up an otherwise insipid clash as Belgium beat England 1-0 to secure top spot in World Cup Group G in Kaliningrad yesterday.  Januzaj’s superb second-half goal sent Belgium into a last 16 clash with Japan while England will now advance to a second round meeting with Colombia on Tuesday.

By finishing second in the group, England have though avoided a loaded top half of the draw containing past winners Brazil, France, Argentina and Uruguay as well as European champions Portugal.

WHO announces; revamped drug could save lives of many new mothers

The World Health Organization says, a revamped drug that can withstand extreme heat and stay effective for 1,000 days could "revolutionise the ability" to keep new mothers alive.
The medicine, known as 'Heat-Stable Carbetocin', helps prevent sometimes fatal bleeding after women give birth.
Existing drugs can help, but hot or humid conditions in many countries may stop the life-saving medicines from working well.
About 70,000 women die each year due to severe bleeding after childbirth. To tackle the problem the WHO currently suggests, an injection Oxytocin be offered to all women undergoing normal deliveries.

Trump-Putin summit agreed by US and Russia in principle

Moscow and Washington have agreed to hold a long-delayed summit between US President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin. The announcement follows a meeting between President Putin and US National Security Adviser John Bolton. Mr Trump said his meeting with Mr Putin could take place after next month's Nato summit in Brussels. The president said the meeting could possibly take place in the Finnish capital, Helsinki.

US Supreme Court upholds Trump’s travel ban

The US Supreme Court handed Donald Trump one of the biggest victories of his presidency yesterday, upholding his travel ban targeting several Muslim-majority countries.
Trump can now claim vindication, after lower courts had blocked his travel ban announced in September.
The ruling comes as the administration has shifted the US approach concerning immigrants, from that of previous administrations.
Trump also has moved to rescind protections for young immigrants sometimes called 'Dreamers' brought into the United States illegally as children.

Macedonian President refuses to sign law, to change country's name

Macedonia’s President: Gjorge Ivanov has refused to sign an agreement on changing the country’s name to resolve a dispute with Greece, describing the name-change as a “criminal act” that violates the constitution.
This month, the foreign ministers of Greece and Macedonia agreed to rename the tiny ex-Yugoslav republic as: “The Republic of North Macedonia”, resolving a decades-old dispute that had blocked Macedonia’s entry into the EU and NATO. Macedonia’s parliament ratified the agreement last week.
The President’s refusal to sign, is unlikely to block the agreement. Parliament is expected to override his veto, with a simple majority in a second vote.

US border agents halt migrant family prosecutions

A US border security chief says he has temporarily stopped launching criminal prosecutions of migrants who illegally enter the country with children.Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan told reporters in Texas the prosecution referrals were suspended last week.He said it followed an order last week by President Donald Trump calling for an end to migrant family separations.But Mr Trump had suggested the families would instead be detained together.

Zimbabwe's elections will be held as planned despite an attempt on the President's life

Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa says elections will go ahead as planned on July 30th, despite what he said was an attempt on his life yesterday. Forty-one people were injured in the blast at a rally in the city of Bulawayo, which occurred close to Mr Mnangagwa as he was leaving the stage. Officials said security arrangements would be reviewed. The vote is the first since Robert Mugabe was ousted and Mr Mnangagwa has vowed they will be peaceful

Over 7,000 people from India filed applications for asylum in US in 2017.

Over 7,000 people from India filed applications for asylum in the US last year, according to a report by the UN refugee agency which said that America was the largest recipient of new asylum requests in 2017. The UN Refugee Agency said in its annual Global Trends report that 68.5 million people globally were displaced as of the end of 2017. In the US, the trend of increasing asylum claims from people originating from the north of Central America also continued. According to the report, there were 197,146 refugees as at 2017 end in India and 10,519 asylum seekers with pending cases. There are about 40,391 asylum seekers from India at the end of last year, the report said.

Thailand carries out first execution since 2009

Thailand has carried out its first execution since 2009, putting a 26-year-old convicted murderer to death by lethal injection.
The convict was executed yesterday, six years after his conviction for stabbing a 17-year-old student 24 times to steal his mobile phone and wallet.
The execution comes, as Thailand's Coup-Leader-turned-Premier: Prayut Chan-O-Cha prepares to travel to Britain and France on an official visit. The trip may now see the former army chief face awkward questions over the use of the death penalty.
Prayut, however, defended capital punishment, telling reporters that in order to maintain law and order, executions are "still a necessity and what people want".