The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reached an agreement with Iran that allows UN inspectors to continue necessary verification and monitoring of Iran’s nuclear facilities for up to 3 months.
Why it matters: The understanding buys more time for more diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran. The Biden administration announced last week it was formally ready to meet with Iran and other world leaders and discuss ways to reinstate the 2015 nuclear deal.
America’s much-maligned vaccine rollout is actually going relatively well, at least compared to other wealthy countries.
The big picture: The U.S. has carried out more vaccinations than any country in the world, and given a first dose to a higher percentage of its population (12%) than all but five countries: Israel, the Seychelles, the UAE, the U.K. and Bahrain.
The United Kingdom will aim to offer all adults in the country the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of July, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Saturday.
Why it matters: The new target comes as the country looks to ease its third nationwide lockdown. Johnson is expected to lay his roadmap for reopening on Monday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday that people who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus will soon be able to download a certificate that would allow them to attend cultural events, fly abroad and go to gyms.
Why it matters: Preventing unvaccinated people or those who have only received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in the country from using those additional services or attending extracurricular activities has created a number of legal, moral and ethical questions for Israel’s government, the New York Times noted.
Severe monsoon flooding across several areas of Indonesia's capital forced more than 1,300 people to evacuate on Saturday, Reuters reported.
The big picture: The country's meteorology agency warned that conditions are expected to worsen as the heaviest rain of the season could fall in and around Jakarta over the next week, per Reuters.
A Moscow court on Saturday ordered Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to pay a fine in a defamation case, hours after another court rejected his appeal against his 2.5-year prison sentence.
The state of play: The court ordered Navalny to pay approximately $11,500 after he called a 94-year-old World War II veteran and others featured in a pro-government video "corrupt stooges," "people without conscience" and "traitors," AP reports.
Myanmar police officers on Saturday opened fire against protesters, killing at least two people and injuring at least 40 others, The New York Times reports.
The state of play: Hundreds of shipyard workers have walked off their jobs since the Feb. 1 military coup. A group of over 1,000 gathered in the city of Mandalay to protest the overthrow of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and demand an end to military rule.
