Hundreds missing after Afghanistan prison attack; Iran’s underreported coronavirus death toll; 90 minute COVID-19 test in Britain
An Afghan security person stands guard near a prison after an attack in the city of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Monday, Aug. 3, 2020.
Top of The World — our morning news round up written by editors at The World. Subscribe here.
Afghan security forces said they have retaken control of a prison today after an hours-long battle a day after the facility was targeted by ISIS in an attack that killed 29 people and left dozens wounded. The hostilities at the prison, located in Jalalabad, about 70 miles east of Kabul, led to more than 1,000 prisoners trying to escape, with 300 still at large.
The attack comes as the US and NATO begin to withdraw troops after a peace deal with the Taliban and serve as a stark reminder of the security challenges in Afghanistan.
Also: A newborn survived an attack at a hospital in Afghanistan. Now the long road to recovery begins.
What The World is following
One person dies from the coronavirus in Iran every seven minutes, the country’s Health Ministry spokesman Sima Sadat Lari said Monday. The grim figure comes as a BBC investigation has found the number of deaths from the coronavirus in Iran is nearly triple what Iran’s government claims.
And, the health minister in Britain announced plans to roll out millions of new coronavirus tests to hospitals and senior care homes that can detect the virus in 90 minutes.
From The World
Embattled Bolivian mayor refuses to step down amid political crisis: ‘Quitting would be a betrayal’
Patricia Arce, mayor of the Bolivian city of Vinto, has operated under a cloak of fear since November, when a mob attacked her in the street and demanded her resignation in the wake of postelection clashes. But she has held on to her role amid rising human rights abuses under the interim national government.
‘Portraits for NHS Heroes’ honors UK’s frontline health workers
A UK project is using the hashtag #PortraitsforNHSHeroes to pair health care workers with artists who are painting their portraits as a way to show appreciation for their work during the pandemic.
Bright spot
Caught red-handed … or rather, red-pawed?! A man in the Berlin borough of Zehlendorf finally got to the bottom of the disappearance of shoes in his neighborhood after snapping a photo of a fox carrying blue flip-flops in its mouth. It turns out the fox had quite a collection of shoes — also, an apparent fondness for Crocs.
In case you missed it
Listen: Hong Kong delays highly anticipated election
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam announced Friday that the election planned for early September will be delayed for one year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Also, the pandemic has upended long-established strategies for protecting people and property from the dangers of hurricanes, raising widespread concerns for the Bahamas as Hurricane Isaias tracks through the Caribbean. Plus, sports teams, leagues and broadcasters around the world are taking different approaches to providing crowd noise for games taking place with no fans in attendance.
Don’t forget to subscribe to The World’s Latest Edition podcast using your favorite podcast player: RadioPublic, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud, RSS.
Our coverage reaches millions each week, but only a small fraction of listeners contribute to sustain our program. We still need 224 more people to donate $100 or $10/monthly to unlock our $67,000 match. Will you help us get there today?