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By Jennifer Rigby, Reuters A patient with mpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Photo: CDC / IMAGE POINT FR / IMAGE POINT FR / BSIP via AFP WHO's slow process delayed vaccine access for Congo First 10,000 doses in Africa going to Nigeria, not Congo Conflict and slow Congo response also delayed vaccines The first 10,000 mpox vaccines are finally due to arrive next week in Africa, where a dangerous new strain of the virus - which has afflicted people there for decades - has caused global alarm. The slow arrival of the shots - which have already been made available in more than 70 countries outside Africa - showed that lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic about global healthcare inequities have been slow to bring change, half a dozen public health officials and scientists ...

By Brad Ryan in Chicago, ABC Thousands of Pro-Palestine protesters march through Chicago during the Democratic national convention, on 21 August, to demand an end to the war on Gaza. Photo: AFP/ JW Hendricks While America's Democratic diehards enjoyed pep talks and pop music at their party-vibes convention this week, a smaller panel event on the sidelines was striking a very different tone. The first speaker, Hala Hijazi, was in tears before she'd even finished introducing herself to the room. "I'm here because I've had over 100 of my family killed in Gaza," Hijazi said. "Just two last week." For years, Hijazi has served the Democratic Party and its causes in San Francisco: fundraising, doorknocking for candidates, and serving on the board of a group that trains Democratic women to r...

This photo taken from a position in northern Israel shows a Hezbollah UAV intercepted by Israeli air forces over north Israel on 25 August. Photo: AFP / JALAA MAREY Hezbollah launched a major barrage of missiles against Israel on Sunday in retaliation for the assassination of a senior commander in Beirut last month, the Iranian-backed movement said, as Israel's cabinet met to prepare a response. Israeli jets hit targets in Lebanon shortly before the strikes were launched as the military assessed that Hezbollah was preparing to begin the barrage. "The IDF identified the Hezbollah terrorist organization preparing to fire missiles and rockets toward Israeli territory. In response to these threats, the IDF is striking terror targets in Lebanon," the Israel Defence Forces said in a statement...

This year's Pacific Islands Forum is being held in Tonga, from 26 to 30 August. Photo: RNZ A deputy Taiwan foreign minister will attend this week's meeting of Pacific Islands leaders in Tonga, Taiwan's foreign ministry said on Sunday, as China and the United States jostle for influence in the region. The Pacific is also an area of competition between Taipei and Beijing, as China whittles away at the number of countries that maintain formal diplomatic relations with Chinese-claimed Taiwan. Three countries - Palau, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands - have stuck with Taiwan. Taiwan's foreign ministry said Deputy Foreign Minister Tien Chung-kwang would hold a summit with its three Pacific allies to strengthen its partnership with them and other "like-minded countries", a reference to Western ...

Dr Anthony Fauci. Photo: AFP / Getty Images Former top US infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci is recovering from West Nile virus after being hospitalised with the mosquito-borne illness for nearly a week, he told Stat News on Saturday. Fauci, 83, became the face of the US government's efforts to contain the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. He retired in December 2022 after 54 years at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) including 38 serving as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). In an interview with Stat News on Saturday (local time), Fauci said he had spent six days in a hospital starting 16 August while doctors tried to discern the source of his weakness, fever and chills. He then tested positive for West Nile virus, and he told the d...

Police respond to the scene in Sydney. Photo: Screenshot / ABC Four people including a police officer were injured in a stabbing attack in Sydney early on Sunday, police said, the latest in a series of knife assaults in Australia's biggest city this year. A man who ran from the scene has been taken into custody, police said in a statement. There is no ongoing threat to people in Sydney, said New South Wales state Police Minister Yasmin Catley. Police said they did not believe anyone was killed in the attack, which followed a crash in the southern suburb of Engadine. Aerial footage of the scene by the Australian Broadcasting Corp showed two crashed cars cordoned off with police tape. Sydney, a city of 5 million, has experienced a spate of knife attacks this year, prompting the New South ...