US News

• A Colorado police officer only received a 90-day sentence for raping a woman in his patrol car. [Link]
• The NDAA includes $60 million to repair the USS Connecticut. The submarine was severely damaged in a collision, but the Navy has not provided public details on the damage. The final repair cost is expected to increase. [Link]

Covid

• The Biden administration will buy 500 million covid tests. [Link]
• A covid outbreak in Japan is linked to the US base in Okinawa. [Link]
• The US gives over 100,000 covid vaccines to the Maldives through Covax. [Link]
• The US gives Libya over a million Pfizer covid vaccines through Covax. [Link]
• The US donated nearly five million covid doses to African countries. [Link]

Russia

• Germany says NATO is considering deploying more weapons to Romania and Bulgaria. [Link]
• Russia is pushing the US for an urgent response to its security proposals. [Link]
• Contacts between Russia and the US on the security proposal begin. [Link]
• US intelligence officials say Russia retains its military presence of between 70,000 and 100,000 troops near its border with Ukraine but an invasion is not imminent. [Link]
• More Americans oppose war with Russia over Ukraine than support it. [Link]
• Poland and Lithuania join Ukraine calling for the US to place more sanctions on Russia. [Link]

China

• The US condemned China’s role in Hong Kong’s election and named five Chinese officials under the Hong Kong Act. The US threatened that any foreign entity doing business with the officials – who were already sanctioned by the US – would be hit with US secondary sanctions. [Link]
• Secretary of State Uzra Zeya was named as special coordinator for Tibet. [Link]

Afghanistan

• The US launched over 150 airstrikes in Afghanistan during August. [Link]

Yemen

• Saudi Arabia used Israel’s NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware to surveil the UN investigator looking into war crimes in Yemen. [Link]
• Saudi bombing is preventing UN aid flights from reaching Yemen. [Link]
• Saudi-backed forces claim to kill 14 Houthi in Maarib. [Link]

Africa

• Two migrant ships sank off the coast of Libya this week, killing 160 people. Another boat was intercepted by the Libyan coast guard and over 200 people were brought back to Libya. [Link]
• Ethiopia is importing drones from Turkey, the UAE, and Iran to fight against the TPLF. [Link]
• Chad will deploy 1,000 troops to Mali in support of the UN mission. [Link]
• One protester was killed in Sudan. [Link]