Axios

While the massive coronavirus outbreaks in Brazil and the United States have garnered global attention in recent weeks, the per capita death rate has actually been higher in the hemisphere’s third giant: Mexico.

Why it matters: The three populist-led countries have combined for roughly half of all COVID-19 deaths recorded worldwide over the past two weeks. Worse still, Mexico’s outbreak has yet to peak, according to Johns Hopkins University.

House Intelligence Chair Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said on CNN Monday that it would be "unfathomable" if President Trump knew about intelligence that Russian operatives allegedly paid Taliban-linked militants to kill U.S. troops and still invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to rejoin the G7 summit in September.

Why it matters: Schiff is one of several bipartisan members of Congress who have urged the Trump administration to provide answers in the wake of bombshell media reports about the alleged Russian bounties. He told CNN that he and several other House Democrats will be briefed on the intelligence on Tuesday morning.

Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) sent a letter to President Trump on Monday calling for Senate hearings over media reports that U.S. intelligence assessed that a Russian spy unit offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Why it matters: The letter, from a Republican Trump ally on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is a sign that the Senate could break partisan lines to scrutinize whether the president knew about the intelligence — and if so, why he did not act on it.

The Chinese government is engaging in a sweeping campaign of forced birth control and sterilization on Uighurs and other minorities that is "far more widespread and systematic" than was previously known, according to an AP investigation published Monday.

Why it matters: The draconian effort, which has been carried out in the western region of Xinjiang over the past four years, has been described by some experts as "demographic genocide." It coincides with years of restrictions and human rights abuses against Uighurs and other majority-Muslim ethnic groups in China under the authoritarian leadership of Xi Jinping.

The Indian government announced Monday it would ban 59 apps developed by Chinese firms, citing national security and privacy concerns.

Why it matters: The applications blocked include ByteDance’s TikTok, a massively popular short-form video app that has come under scrutiny in the U.S. and elsewhere amid growing concerns about Chinese technological threats. India is TikTok's largest market, according to TechCrunch.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi asked top intelligence leaders on Monday to brief House members on reports that Russia secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

The state of play: While President Trump has denied being briefed on the alleged intelligence, press reports indicate that he was aware of it earlier this year and that the National Security Council discussed the issue at an interagency meeting in late March.

Carbon dioxide emissions from China have "surged back from the coronavirus lockdown" last month, exceeding their level from May 2019, a new analysis shows.

Why it matters: China is by far the world's largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. Its trajectory in the coming years and decades will play a key role in global efforts to rein in — or fail to rein in — heat-trapping emissions.

Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz told President Trump's advisers on Monday that he thinks the Israeli government should prioritize the fight against the coronavirus pandemic over moving forward with annexation of parts of the West Bank, Gantz aides said.

Why it matters: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to move forward with annexation of at least some territory as soon as July 1. He's been hoping for a green light from the White House, which has signaled it wants Israel's top leaders to be unified behind such a move. Gantz’s reservations make the situation more difficult.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked evangelical supporters to lobby in favor of Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, via a speech Sunday night to the American group the Christians United for Israel (CUFI).

Why it matters: Israeli officials say Netanyahu thinks President Trump is politically vulnerable four months before the U.S. election and that he could lose to presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. He thinks Trump needs the evangelical base to go to vote in order to have a chance at winning.

Security officials in Karachi, Pakistan, killed four men armed with guns and at least one hand grenade as the militants attempted to enter the southern port city's stock exchange building Monday, per Bloomberg. A police officer and two security guards died during the attack.

Why it matters: The Baluchistan Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, claimed responsibility, AP reports. It's the worst terrorist incident in Pakistan's financial hub since 2018, when gunmen stormed the Chinese consulate and killed seven people, Bloomberg notes. That attack was also claimed by the BLA.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

Events around the world marking 50 years since the first Gay Pride march in New York were canceled over the weekend because of concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

The big picture: Organizers of official marches in New York City and other cities instead marked the milestone with online events and visual displays. But marches still took place in several cities, albeit in reduced numbers. Per the New York Times, one of the biggest rallies took place in NYC on Sunday, where thousands attended the Queer Liberation March toward Stonewall, where the LGBTQ movement began.

President Trump tweeted Sunday night that officials didn't brief him on alleged intelligence that a Russian military spy unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan because "they did not find this info credible."

Why it matters: Kremlin involvement with the Taliban that resulted in the death of American troops would mark a massive escalation in the U.S.-Russian relationship. Trump has already faced intense criticism over reports that he knew about the intelligence and took no action.