Updated Jul 28, 2018

Iraqi Prime Minister sacks five election officials with corruption

An Iraqi official examining a ballot. Photo: Haidar Hamdani/AFP via Getty Images

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi charged five election officials on Saturday with corruption following a manual recount of the ballots from the the May 12 parliamentary election, reports Reuters.

The state of play: Abadi appointed a special committee to investigate claims of vote rigging in regions around the country. Local election chiefs in Kirkuk, Anbar and Salahuddin, Judge Laith Jabr Hamza as well as officials overseas election offices in Turkey and Jordan were all dismissed.

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Fadel Allassan

Updated 2 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Biden: George Floyd's last words are "a wake-up call for our nation"

Former Vice President Joe Biden meets with clergy members and community activists during a visit to Bethel AME Church in Wilmington, Del. on June 1, 2020. Photo: JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

Vice President Joe Biden is calling George Floyd’s dying words “a wake-up call for our nation,” and criticized President Trump’s decision to unleash tear gas on peaceful protesters outside the White House, in a civil rights speech from Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Why it matters: Biden in the address drew a sharp contrast between himself and Trump, whose first remarks addressing nationwide unrest Monday highlighted law and order, extreme demonstrations of militarized “strength” and other blustery threats.

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Axios

Updated 10 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 11 a.m. ET: 6,302,318 — Total deaths: 376,322 — Total recoveries — 2,716,924 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 11 a.m. ET: 1,812,125 — Total deaths: 105,192 — Total recoveries: 458,231 — Total tested: 17,340,682 — Map.
Public health: Protests against police brutality threaten coronavirus response.
Business: Coronavirus could lower GDP by $15.7 trillion — More than 1 in 6 black workers lost jobs between February and April.
Climate: The alarm over climate financial risk gets louder because of coronavirus.
Media: Interest in the George Floyd protests has soared past the coronavirus.

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Dan Primack

37 mins ago - Economy & Business

The business of tear gas

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

U.S. forces yesterday used tear gas on peaceful protesters outside the White House gates, prior to a declared curfew, clearing a path for President Trump to visit a riot-damaged church for a photo opportunity.

The state of play: Two of the largest U.S. producers of tear gas are owned by private equity firms, but those firms have no interest in discussing their ownership.

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