World news in brief
Lollapalooza sparks Covid superspreader fears
As the Lollapalooza continues this week, photos of huge, unmasked crowds are spurring fears that the music festival could become a Covid-19 superspreader event. The festival kicked off in Chicago’s Grant Park two days ago, and are scheduled to continue until tomorrow. About 100,000 people are expected to attend each day.
According to the event’s website, concertgoers are required to either show proof of vaccination or, if they’re not vaccinated, present a negative Covid test from the past 72 hours. If it’s the
latter, attendees are also required to wear masks. In photos of the event, however, very few masks could be seen.
Haiti president widow speaks out on assassination
In her first interview since the Haitian president’s assassination on 7 July, Martine Moise described the searing pain of witnessing her husband being killed. “The only thing that I saw before they killed him were their boots,” she said of the moment Jovenel Moise, former Haiti president, was shot dead beside her in their room.
“When they left, they thought I was dead,” she said. Haitian police have detained a wide array of people in connection with the killing, including 18 Colombians and several Haitians and Haitian Americans, and they are still seeking others.
US readies new Cuba sanctions
The Biden administration is expected to impose new sanctions on Cuba as the president meets with Cuban-American leaders at the White House to discuss a US response to recent social protests on the island.
Officials say new moves against the communist government would likely be announced after Biden’s afternoon meeting yesterday, which covered a range of options the administration is considering in response to the protests, including providing internet access to Cubans. The officials were not authorised to preview the actions and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Italian MP chased out of parliament
An Italian MP was filmed being chased out of parliament by security guards after waving a placard in protest against the country’s “green pass” scheme. Video footage shows the man dodging security as they try to grab the sign, which says “no green pass”, out of his hands. The politician is chased out of the
chamber by one guard as numerous other MPs make their way down to the floor holding similar signs.
The parliamentary session was temporarily suspended amid cries of “shame” aimed at those protesting. Their demonstration two days ago came after the Italian government announced it would introduce a vaccine passport scheme for accessing indoor venues amid rising coronavirus cases driven by the Delta variant.
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