Jun 7, 2020 - World

Top Australian official calls Black Lives Matter protests "reckless"

Indigenous Australian protesters perform a traditional smoking ceremony before the start of a Black Lives Matter demonstration on Saturday. Photo: Peter Parks/AFP via Getty Images

Australia's finance minister called Black Lives Matter protesters "selfish" on Sunday after tens of thousands of Australians rallied in cities including Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane over the weekend despite a ban on large gatherings during the pandemic.

Details: Mathias Cormann told Sky News it's "reckless" and "self-indulgent" to hold demonstrations as officials try to stop the spread of COVID-19. Police in the state of Victoria said they would fine protest organizers A$1,652 (U.S.$1,150) each for defying the ban, per AAP.

Of note: The rallies were held to show support for U.S. protesters and to highlight the disproportionate number of deaths in custody and incarceration of indigenous Australians.

  • Indigenous adults make up about 2% of Australia's population and 27% of the national prison population, official figures show.

By the numbers: Australia has 562 active novel coronavirus cases as of Sunday, per Australian Health Department data.

Go deeper: In photos: People around the world rally against racism

Go deeper

Axios
Updated 12 hours ago - Health

World coronavirus updates

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios VisualsThe

The death toll from COVID-19 surpassed 700,000 early Wednesday, Johns Hopkins data shows.

By the numbers: More than 18.5 million people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus and over 11.1 million have recovered.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated 40 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3:30 p.m. ET: 18,614,542 — Total deaths: 702,330 — Total recoveries — 11,181,018— Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3:30 p.m. ET: 4,793,950 — Total deaths: 157,416 — Total recoveries: 1,528,979 — Total tests: 58,239,438 — Map.
  3. 2020: Joe Biden will no longer travel to Milwaukee for Democratic convention.
  4. Public health: Florida surpasses 500,000 confirmed cases — Moderna skirts disclosures of vaccine costs.
  5. Sports: The return of high school sports hangs in the balance — UConn becomes first FBS team to cancel football season.
  6. Education: Chicago Public Schools to begin school year fully remote.
Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Dave Lawler
Updated 51 mins ago - World

Beirut explosion: Death toll rises to 135, officials under house arrest

Photo: Anwar Amro/AFP via Getty Images

The death toll from Tuesday's explosion in Beirut, Lebanon has now surpassed 130, including at least one U.S. citizen, amid a search for answers as to why a huge store of ammonium nitrate was left unsecured near the city's port for nearly seven years.

What we know: The government says around 5,000 people are injured. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said current indications are that the massive explosion was accidental, despite President Trump's puzzling claim on Tuesday evening that it appeared to be a bomb attack.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow